New 'Sentinel Project' trains beer, wine distributors to watch for human trafficking

Nora Mabie
Great Falls Tribune
Stop human trafficking banner.

In partnership with the Montana Beer and Wine Distributors Association, Montana Association of Chiefs of Police and the LifeGuard Group, Montana Attorney General Austin Knudsen announced the Sentinel Project, a new public-private partnership to combat human trafficking. 

As part of the initiative, beer and wine distribution employees participated in a human trafficking awareness training and have information to alert authorities and the statewide human trafficking hotline (833-406-STOP), should they see suspicious behavior. 

Human trafficking cases in the state have risen annually; the Montana Department of Justice tracked 41 cases in 2020. In 2015, the agency reported seven human trafficking cases in Montana, according to a news release. 

Montana Attorney General Austin Knudsen

Knudsen said "it's going to take our entire state coming together" to end human trafficking.

“(Montana Beer and Wine Distributors Association's) drivers, merchandisers and salespeople are the boots on the ground in our communities, day in and day out. Their efforts to identify and report signs of human trafficking will aid law enforcement tremendously in this fight," he said. 

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Mike Markovich, Montana Beer and Wine Distributors Association president, said while the association's partnership with the state may seem unlikely, the Sentinel Project allows employees to be "an extra set of eyes on the ground in the fight against human trafficking."

"We are in the backrooms of the bars. ... We are in the areas that law enforcement don't often have access to," he said on Wednesday at an announcement event in Helena. 

Beer and wine distributors visit more than 3,200 retail establishments statewide, including bars, restaurants, hotels, grocery stores and sports arenas. 

The Montana Legislature created the Missing Indigenous Persons Task Force in 2019 with the passage of Senate Bill 312, known as the Looping in Native Communities (LINC) Act.

Native American women and girls account for about 3.3% of the state's population, yet they comprise between 30% to 40% of the human and sex trafficking victims in Montana, according to a news release. 

Also read: Statewide human trafficking hotline launches

The Missing Indigenous Persons Task Force on Wednesday reported 167 active missing persons cases in the state. Though Native Americans comprise 6.7% of the state's population, they account for 31% of the state's active missing persons population. Eighteen of the missing Indigenous persons had been missing for more than one year. 

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The statewide hotline can be reached (via phone call or text) at 1-833-406-STOP. Victims may also visit www.406stop.com. 

Nora Mabie can be reached at nmabie@greatfallstribune.com. Follow her on Facebook @NoraMabieJournalist or on Twitter @NoraMabie. To support local news, subscribe today.