The Exodus Road, Homeland Security Investigations (HSI), and Cellebrite to host trainings for Colorado law enforcement

The anti-human trafficking trainings are being led by top experts in the field and will take place in two events in Boulder and Colorado Springs

COLORADO SPRINGS, CO, UNITED STATES, April 8, 2025 /EINPresswire.com/ -- In separate conference events taking place on April 10 and 11 in Boulder and April 14 in Colorado Springs, The Exodus Road, together with Homeland Security Investigations (HSI) Denver and Colorado Springs and Cellebrite, are collaborating to host expert anti-trafficking training events for law enforcement. Made possible with support from the Office of Senator Michael Bennet (D-Colo), the Traffickwatch Academy events will feature a dynamic lineup of industry thought leaders and practitioners.

The training events draw on The Exodus Road’s firsthand experience supporting law enforcement in the fight against trafficking worldwide. With more than 13 years of established impact involving 5,600+ survivors freed from trafficking, 1,700+ perpetrators arrested, and 52,000+ officers and citizens equipped with training and prevention education, the organization is uniquely poised to galvanize a suite of qualified voices offering skills training to law enforcement.

Attendees of both the Boulder and Colorado Springs conferences will participate in thorough training around topics such as victim-centered approaches, ethical considerations for human trafficking investigations, and understanding the roles of mental health and trauma care as officers. Highly specialized technical training will be offered by industry-leading technology providers such as Cellebrite, NXDS, and Apira.

The Exodus Road’s Co-founder and Chief Investigative Officer, Matt Parker, will emcee the events. The organization has drawn on insights from some of the country’s foremost field experts to present in their event lineup. Across both events, the roster includes Bill Woolf (former Acting Director of the Office for Victims of Crime and FBI/HSI Task Force Officer), Page McBeth (Veteran Investigator, Oregon ICAC Task Force and Senior Solutions Expert Cellebrite), Heather Barnhart (U.S. Air Force National Guard, former, and Senior Director of Forensic Research, Cellebrite), Julia Watson (LPC, Owner Watson Counseling LLC.), Chad Miller (Deputy, Douglas County Sheriff’s Office, Nebraska), and Sarah Ray (Director of Education and Aftercare, The Exodus Road).

“The Exodus Road is honored to host these incredible leaders who truly hold some of the most valuable expertise in the world when it comes to combatting human trafficking crime,” says Laura Parker, CEO of The Exodus Road. “We have learned that cross-sector partnerships are critical for enacting systemic change. These days of training represent exactly that kind of meaningful collaboration.”

The training events are made possible by support from the Office of Senator Michael Bennet (D-Colo) and are funded by grants awarded by the Office for Victims of Crime (U.S. Department of Justice).

“Human trafficking is a horrific crime that continues to impact too many individuals and families across Colorado,” says Senator Bennet (D-Colo). “I’m proud to support The Exodus Road, Homeland Security Investigations, and Cellebrite in providing Colorado law enforcement with the tools and training they need to identify trafficking, support survivors, and hold traffickers accountable. These partnerships and training efforts are vital to creating safer communities and ensuring justice for victims.”

As a global leader in digital intelligence solutions, Cellebrite brings critical technological expertise to these training events. Their advanced digital forensics tools have been instrumental in countless human trafficking investigations, helping law enforcement agencies extract, analyze, and manage digital evidence to build stronger cases against traffickers.

"Cellebrite is proud to be part of this invaluable training - led by our partners at The Exodus Road," said Erik Sachwitz, head of Cellebrite Federal Solutions. "Cellebrite's technology is uniquely positioned to help dismantle these human trafficking networks. Our team is energized and motivated to help equip those on the front lines with the knowledge and solutions needed to stop this global crime."

The need for this kind of targeted training is dire. Currently, the ILO estimates that 50 million people worldwide are in modern-day slavery — and over 1.1 million of them are in the United States. In 2023, 440 reports of suspected trafficking were made to the National Human Trafficking Hotline. The issue tends to be vastly underreported and difficult to identify, which makes exert training essential.

These April days of law enforcement training are closed events, but media interested in arranging coverage can contact press@theexodusroad.com.

About The Exodus Road

The Exodus Road is a global nonprofit disrupting the darkness of modern-day slavery by partnering with law enforcement to fight human-trafficking crime, equipping communities to protect the vulnerable and empowering survivors as they walk into freedom. Working side-by-side with local staff, NGO partners, and law enforcement around the world, The Exodus Road fights to liberate trafficked individuals, arrest traffickers, and provide restorative care for survivors. Since its founding in 2012, the organization has assisted police in the rescue of 5,600 survivors and the arrests of more than 1,700 offenders, numbers that grow almost daily. The Exodus Road’s approach to freedom incorporates intervention, training and education, and aftercare efforts.

In training and education, The Exodus Road offers a suite of online and in-person curriculums including TraffickWatch: Brazil, an online training curriculum specifically designed for law enforcement partners; INFLUENCED, a curriculum equipping United States and Brazilian parents and teens to participate in the online world while avoiding the dangers of exploitation; and Equip and Empower, a human trafficking prevention education curriculum for at-risk youth in Thailand. Cumulatively, the organization has trained more than 52,000 officers and citizens through their training and education curriculums.

The Exodus Road combats human trafficking in the U.S., Thailand, the Philippines, India, Brazil and in another undisclosed, Latin American country. The nonprofit was founded in Colorado Springs, Colorado in 2012, and still calls the city home for the U.S. office.

For additional information or to make a donation to help stop human trafficking, please visit The Exodus Road’s website at https://theexodusroad.com/ or its Facebook, Instagram, Twitter, LinkedIn, and YouTube.

Preston Goff
The Exodus Road
+1 719-941-9755
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