Sex workers are often disconnected from society and don’t tend to trust the police. Officials in Northwest Indiana say the Vann case shows why that needs to change.
For instance, some of Vann’s alleged victims were not even reported missing.
“When I first started hearing about it really broke my heart. Sounds like no one really went looking for them,” said Aubrey Lloyd, a local advocate of human trafficking victims. “It’s a sad way to end your life. That was someone’s daughter at one point.”
Lloyd says she almost suffered the same fate as Hardy.
“I was assaulted by two men. Beaten very, very significantly and left for dead in a park. It’s such a dark world and you can easily get lost in it,” she said.