<P> The New York State Office of Children and Family Services estimated in 2007 that New York City is home to more than 2,000 sexually exploited children under 18 . At least 85 percent of these youths statewide have had some contact with the child welfare system, mostly through abuse or neglect proceedings . In New York City, 75 percent have been in foster care . Mishi Faruqee, who is in charge of juvenile justice issues for the Correctional Association of New York, questioned the reliability of the estimate . "We believe that number is really an undercount ." This is confirmed by SNRG - NYC's New York City population estimate of 2008 which was 3,946 . </P> <P> Brothels catering exclusively to Latino males, referred to as "Latino Residential Brothels", are a major vehicle for sex trafficking, with the victims being almost exclusively women and children from Latin America . Trafficking of U.S. citizens within the U.S. occurs as well . They typically own informal underground businesses in urban, suburban, and rural areas . </P> <P> Law authorities have led sting operations in connection with Super Bowl games . During the Super Bowl XLVIII, authorities arrested 45 pimps and rescued 25 child victims of human trafficking . During Super Bowl XLIX, authorities led a sting operation called National Day of Johns and arrested almost 600 people and rescued 68 victims . </P> <P> According to the National Human Rights Center in Berkeley, California, there are currently about 10,000 forced laborers in the U.S., around one - third of whom are domestic servants and some portion of whom are children . In reality, this number could be far higher due to the difficulty in getting exact numbers of victims, due to the secretive nature of human trafficking . The U.S. government only keeps a count of survivors, defined as victims of severe instances of human trafficking, who have been assisted by the government in acquiring immigration benefits . Research at San Diego State University estimates that there are 2.4 million victims of human trafficking among illegal Mexican immigrants . Research by the Urban Institute says that law enforcement agencies do not prioritize labor trafficking cases, were reluctant to help victims obtain authorization to legally remain in the United States, and felt there was not enough evidence to corroborate victim statements . </P>

Top cities in the united states for human trafficking