This week, the story of South Carolina’s most notorious labor trafficking case and a look at what's being done to raise awareness of these types of crimes.
Chris Smith started working at J&J Cafeteria in Conway at a young age, washing dishes. He eventually started working at the restaurant full-time.
It was a good job, until Bobby Edwards took over as manager.
That’s when the abuse began. Edwards stopped paying Chris and forced him to work 100 hours or more per week. He physically harmed Chris, verbally abused him and isolated him from others.
That went on for six years.
This was a case of human trafficking, or, more specifically labor trafficking. Projects reporter Jennifer Berry Hawes explains what Chris endured and how he got out, and Kathryn Moorehead, director of the South Carolina Human Trafficking Task Force, discusses ongoing efforts to raise awareness around these kinds of crimes.
If you believe you or someone you know is a victim of human trafficking, or may have information about a trafficking situation, call the National Human Trafficking Hotline toll-free at 1-888-373-7888 or text the hotline at 233733. Or, visit humantraffickinghotline.org.
Learn more about the South Carolina Human Trafficking Task Force.
The Post and Courier is hosting a free panel event, Don't Look Away: What is labor trafficking and why is it hard to recognize? Find more information here about how to attend.
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This episode was hosted and edited by Emily Williams and featured Jennifer Berry Hawes, projects reporter for The Post and Courier.
Understand SC is a weekly podcast from The Post and Courier that draws from the reporting resources and knowledge of our newsroom to help you better understand South Carolina.