A 23-year-old man, Melvon Bellard, was arrested in Reno on February 5, following a months-long investigation into child sex trafficking. 

For the past three months, the regional Human Exploitation and Trafficking Unit (H.E.A.T) had been investigating Bellard. The investigation involved a 16-year-old female victim who was recovered during an operation in December 2025.

Investigators say Bellard had been allegedly trafficking the victim since she was 15 in both Nevada and California.

The HEAT Unit, a multiagency task force made up of detectives from the Reno Police Department, Sparks Police Department, and Washoe County School Police, works collaboratively to combat human exploitation and trafficking in the region.

Detectives said they developed information that Bellard would be in Reno on February 5. With help from the Regional Gang Unit and a Reno Police Department K-9 officer, officers located and contacted him, taking him into custody that day.

He was arrested on charges related to the alleged child sex trafficking case, including sex trafficking of a child, child abuse for sexual exploitation, and attempt to live off the earnings of prostitution.

Bellard was also booked on charges in a separate case, including pandering, attempt to live off the earnings of prostitution, possession of a firearm by a prohibited person, and possession of a firearm without a serial number.