More time needed for human trafficking trial

More time needed for human trafficking trial

More time is needed to complete a trial that has a 20-year-old Brantford woman at the center of an alleged human-trafficking scheme.

The Superior Court trial in Cayuga, which began March 21, did not end April 15 as scheduled. Instead, the case will return to assignment court on May 24 to set further dates.

The woman, who can’t be named due to a publication ban protecting her identity, spent 12 days on the stand, testifying against four of her alleged traffickers.

Daniel Campbell, 36, Joshua Hillock, 32, Dragisa Lucic, 30 and Crystal-Anne Marier, 36, all of Caledonia, are accused of trafficking the young woman and profiting from her sex work in late 2019. They all pleaded not guilty before Justice Robert J. Nightingale.

A fifth person, Carly Creor, 27, also of Caledonia and also charged with human trafficking, will face a separate trial.

In January 2020, the victim contacted police while at a hotel in Guelph. Officers picked her up and the OPP began an investigation.

Later that month, the accused were arrested after the police investigation led officers to a home in Caledonia. Officers seized drugs and drug paraphernalia, replica guns and ammunition.

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