COLUMBUS, Ohio — Two Texas men suspected of human trafficking were arrested after traveling to central Ohio with four victims, including one juvenile, law enforcement officials announced today. The arrests were made by the Central Ohio Human Trafficking Task Force following a coordinated effort with the FBI and Texas Department of Public Safety.
On March 13, the FBI’s Houston office and the Texas Department of Public Safety alerted the task force about a juvenile trafficking victim believed to be in Columbus. In response, the task force, along with the Columbus Division of Police’s PACT Unit, launched an investigation to locate the missing teen.
That evening, Timarrea Granderson, 27, from Cyprus, Texas, was arrested. One of the four victims was found with him at the time of his arrest.
Later that night, law enforcement officers apprehended Larry Hill, 26, from Houston, after he barricaded himself inside a residence on West Kanawha Avenue in Columbus. Two additional victims were located at the scene. The Columbus Police Division’s SWAT team and the Sharon Township Police Department assisted in Hill’s arrest.
The fourth victim was rescued from a separate location.
All four victims, who are residents of Texas, are receiving support and services from the Central Ohio Human Trafficking Task Force.
Granderson and Hill are facing charges in Texas, including trafficking of a person and compelling prostitution of a minor. The two men are awaiting extradition to Texas.
The Central Ohio Human Trafficking Task Force, which is led by the Columbus Division of Police, works in partnership with various law enforcement agencies, including the Bureau of Criminal Investigations, Homeland Security Investigations, the FBI, and local police departments.
The task force is part of Ohio Attorney General Dave Yost’s Ohio Organized Crime Investigations Commission, which oversees seven human trafficking task forces covering 25 counties across Ohio.
To report suspected human trafficking in Ohio, residents can:
- Call (844) END-OHHT.
- Text “ENDOHHT” to 847411.
- Download the END OHHT app on Apple or Android devices.
- Submit information online at gov/ENDOHHT.
