exploitation

On April 18, 2017 the South Lake Tahoe City Council unanimously passed a resolution to: 1) Power the South Lake Tahoe community with electricity provided from 100 percent renewable sources by 2032 and 2) Reduce community carbon emissions from baseline by at least 80 percent by 2040, and reduce municipal emissions by 50 percent by 2030.

SOUTH LAKE TAHOE, Calif. - The South Lake Tahoe man arrested in April on child pornography charges was indicted today by a federal grand jury.

Timothy Daniel Mackey, 39, was arrested at his home after a search warrant served on April 15, 2020. Since that time he has been in jail. If convicted, Mackey faces 5-20 years in prison and up to $250,000 in fines.

SACRAMENTO, Calif. - The FBI anticipates cyber actors will exploit increased use of virtual environments by government agencies, the private sector, private organizations, and individuals as a result of the COVID-19 pandemic. Computer systems and virtual environments provide essential communication services for telework and education, in addition to conducting regular business. The criminal, or cyber actor, will exploit vulnerabilities in these systems to steal sensitive information, target individuals and businesses performing financial transactions, and engage in extortion.

We all must come together as one if we would like to end domestic abuse and human trafficking. I applaud the brave women who have been coming forward, discussing their past and the traumas they have endured. One of the reasons that we read history books is so we can learn from others mistakes. If we would like to make an impacting change in this world, we must acknowledge the whole issue.

The Douglas County Sheriff's Office (DCSO) recently made connections with a senior citizen through their new Caring Neighbors Program. They found the senior had been scammed out of over $34,000 over the past 20 months.

In the program, a deputy and a volunteer visit seniors to obtain needed information such as consent, next of kin and medication information. The information is beneficial in case of a future emergency involving the senior citizen.

The question I get asked the most when sharing that I’m a member of PATH (Partners Against the Trafficking of Humans) is: Is human trafficking happening here in South Lake Tahoe? The answer is yes, although solid numbers are hard to come by. Recently, it was reported in local media that 14 people were arrested and one 17 year old girl rescued from a trafficking ring in El Dorado County that included South Lake Tahoe, Placerville, and El Dorado Hills.

Former Heavenly Mountain Resort employee Stephan DeGraffenreid pleaded guilty Tuesday to one count of sexual exploitation of a minor and two counts of attempted sexual exploitation of a minor.

He faces a mandatory minimum of 15 years in prison on each of the three counts.

A 26-year-old male employee at the Heavenly Mountain Resort children’s ski school was officially charged Wednesday for child exploitation and possession of child pornography after images were found on an electronic device at the resort.

Stephan L. DeGraffenreid of Gardnerville was charged with one count of sexual exploitation of a child, two counts of attempted sexual exploitation of a child, and one count of possession of child pornography.

A flash mob in the middle of Heavenly Village isn't a normal occurrence, so at 2:00 p.m. February 4 when a few dozen women and children started dancing to music, people stopped and the phone cameras came out.

For the past several weeks, members of the South Lake Tahoe community have been rehearsing a dance to the music "Break the Chain" in support of "One Billion Rising", a one-day international event to bring exploitation of women, human trafficking and violence against women and girls to the forefront.

Former South Lake Tahoe Fire Captain Mark McLeod Wygant, 46, pleaded guilty in federal court today to transportation of child pornography.

Following an FBI and SLT Police Department investigation, Wygant was a
arrested on Jan. 29 2015 and has been in custody ever since. He had been immediately placed on administration leave but resigned just days after his arrest.

"I am pleased that Mr. Wygant plead guilty to his crime and the punishment will now in the hands of the criminal justice system," said SLT Fire Chief Jeff Meston.

Deputies from the El Dorado County Sheriff's Office responded to a report of an assault with a deadly weapon in Diamond Springs on Tuesday, May 31 at 10:00 a.m.

Upon arrival, they discovered that Luis Javier Calderon, 33, had taken a knife from the home's kitchen and went into a bedroom where a 14-year-old female relative was sleeping. Calderon held the knife to her neck and made her stand and remove all of her clothing, according to a EDSO press release.

The El Dorado County Health and Human Services Agency is looking for individuals in the South Lake Tahoe area who could open their hearts and homes to a child in need of care. Local individuals and families are needed to serve as Resource Families, providing shelter care (up to thirty days) or full term homes (up to and over eighteen months) for foster children.

According to the California Department of Justice, Human Trafficking is a $32 billion a year global enterprise and the fastest growing criminal industry. It is a form of modern day slavery that profits from the exploitation of our most vulnerable populations. California's Attorney General Kamala Harris is focused on combating the pervasive issue of human trafficking in California and has made it one of her top priorities.

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Ponderosa High School resource officers were notified of a 16-year-old male student who was reportedly showing photos of a naked female to other students on Tuesday, October 20, 2015.

An investigation was started and the photos were located on the student’s cellular telephone. The photos were of an underage nude female who had posed for the pictures. Further investigation revealed the same male subject allegedly inappropriately touched another female student the prior day while on the campus, which is located in Cameron Park.

Author Michael S. Green will discuss his book Nevada: A History of the Silver State in a free presentation at the Dangberg Home Ranch Historic Park on Sunday, September 27, at 10:00 am.
Michael S. Green, a leading Nevada historian, provides a detailed survey of the Silver State’s past, from the arrival of the early European explorers, to the predominance of mining in the 1800s, to the rise of world-class tourism in the twentieth century, and more recent attempts to diversify the economy.

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What are the first thoughts that go through your mind when you see a youth on the streets? How did they get there, where are their parents, and are they safe? It’s disturbing to realize that between 1.6 and 2.8 million youth run away annually. Most youth who run away do so because of threatening environments at home, such as physical/verbal abuse, substance abuse issues, questions of sexual orientation, or escaping state care. Unfortunately, by choosing to run away, they further subject themselves to threatening situations that impede their progress in life.

Incidents of human trafficking and the commercial sexual exploitation of children (CSEC) are becoming more prevalent in the County of El Dorado and more and more common throughout the country.

From 2010 to 2012, the El Dorado County Health & Human Services Agency (HHSA) was aware of 3 CSEC cases. From 2013 to present, HHSA is aware of 15 additional CSEC cases, most of which are children in the foster care and/or probation system.