Two 18-Year-Olds Arrested in Connection With Juvenile Human Trafficking Ring
STANISLAUS COUNTY, CA — Detectives with the Stanislaus County Sheriff’s Office Human Exploitation and Trafficking (HEAT) Task Force arrested two 18-year-old men on Tuesday, Sept. 8, 2026, following an investigation into the commercial sex trafficking of a 16-year-old victim.
The investigation began on Sept. 3 after detectives identified the 16-year-old female victim, an Anaheim resident. Investigators traced the operations to Braden Groves of Turlock and Emilio Barrera of Patterson. Authorities discovered that the pair conducted multiple trips across California—including Southern California, Sacramento, and the San Francisco Bay Area—trafficking the juvenile alongside adult victims for monetary gain.
During the early morning hours of Sept. 8, task force detectives located Groves inside an Oakland motel room. Officers safely recovered the 16-year-old victim and transferred her to the custody of Child Protective Services. Detectives subsequently arrested Barrera later that day in Turlock and seized more than $11,000 in cash connected to the operation.
Groves and Barrera were booked into custody on charges of human trafficking of a minor (PC 236.1(c)) and conspiracy to commit a crime (PC 182(a)). Both suspects remain jailed on $900,000 bail each.
The investigation remains ongoing. Authorities encourage anyone with information to submit tips anonymously to Stanislaus County Area Crime Stoppers via stancrimetips.org or by calling 1-866-60-CRIME.
