A traffic stop in Richland Hills on Sunday led to the arrests of two men on charges they were involved in human trafficking and forced three teenagers to work, police said.
An officer stopped a vehicle in the 3400 block of Booth Calloway Road at about 12:40 a.m.
The driver and four passengers spoke Spanish and had no identification, police said.
Jose Leonel Flores, 45, and Jorge Martinez Jimenez, 34, were arrested on human trafficking charges.
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Three men in the back of the car, ages 17, 18 and 19, were victims and taken to a victim advocacy center to help them. They were all from Guatemala, according to a police news release.
They were forced to work in the roofing business, Richland Hills police Capt. Sheena McEachran said.
"Texas is a real hotbed for trafficking unfortunately," said Brad Walcher, spokesman for Unbound North Texas, a non-profit group that helps victims. "It's a real heinous crime. It's a crime against a person."
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He said it can involve people of any age and ethnicity.
"We see labor trafficking specifically happening in farming and agriculture, we see it in hotels and motels, we see it in restaurants, especially in Dallas," Walcher said.
