From behind closed doors to online spaces, investigators across Northern Nevada spent the past year focused on one goal: disrupting human exploitation and finding people who needed help.
Between January 1, 2025, and January 1, 2026, the Regional Human Exploitation and Trafficking Unit carried out targeted investigations involving sex trafficking, child exploitation, child sexual abuse material, and people accused of soliciting or profiting from exploitation.
The unit, known as HEAT, includes detectives from the Reno Police Department, Sparks Police Department, and the Washoe County School District Police Department. Together, they worked cases that resulted in 143 arrests and 287 criminal charges, most of them felonies.
Investigators reported 60 convictions during the year, with other cases still moving through the courts. Sentencing in those cases totaled nearly 700 years in prison, including six sentences that carry a maximum of life.
Victim recovery remained a central focus. The unit reported recovering 55 people from the illegal sex industry, including 18 children who were girls and 37 adult women.
Looking ahead, HEAT plans to expand services for recovered victims. With support from the Sparks Police Department, the unit will add a full-time victim advocate in 2026 to help connect people with needed resources.
The work extended beyond arrests. Detectives also held 18 public training sessions and 12 law enforcement trainings across Nevada, focusing on awareness, prevention, and investigative practices tied to human trafficking.
As the unit enters 2026, investigators say they will continue working with law enforcement partners and the community while prioritizing victim recovery and ongoing investigations into human exploitation.
The team says they rescued 55 victims in 2025.
