San Diego Comic-Con Human Trafficking Sting Busts 14 Criminals, Saves 10 Victims

This year's San Diego Comic-Con wasn't as quiet as the 2023 edition, what with the reveal that Robert Downey Jr. will be returning to the Marvel Cinematic Universe as Doctor Doom, among other announcements. It was also notable for a major arrest conducted by the city's Human Trafficking Task Force.

California's Department of Justice reported on July 30 that it arrested several criminals at SDCC. During the convention's three-day span, an anti-human trafficking sting aimed at targeting sex buyers and those who traffic individuals for purposes of prostitution netted 14 individuals and saved 10 victims. Among the victims was a 16-year-old girl. Those rescued have been offered services by adult and juvenile support service advocates, while the accused await processing.

"Unfortunately, sex traffickers capitalize on large scale events such as Comic-Con to exploit their victims for profit. These arrests send a clear message to potential offenders that their criminal behavior will not be tolerated. We are grateful to all our dedicated partners involved in the San Diego Human Trafficking Task Force, whose collaboration has been invaluable. We take great pride in our office's commitment to uplifting vulnerable Californians by offering them assistance and guidance when they need it most," said California Attorney General Rob Bonta in a statement published by the CDJ.

Crime will attach itself to most large, public gatherings of individuals. Though some actors avoid the San Diego Comic-Con, there were 100,000 attendees this year, and there's bound to be trouble in a crowd that big. There was a previous publicized incident at the convention in which a crime took place.

San Diego Comic-Con has seen its share of true crime incidents before the 2024 sex trafficking sting took place. In 2014, for instance, a 17-year-old girl was found with severe injuries in a hotel after attending the convention, per Polygon. The unnamed victim was found in the pool area of the San Diego Marriott Marquis and Marina Hotel, bloody and unconscious. While it was originally reported at the time that she had suffered a physical and sexual assault, surveillance footage showed the victim's injuries were caused by a fall. She was taken to a nearby hospital, where she was placed in its intensive care unit and treated for skull and eye-socket fractures and cerebral hemorrhaging, among other injuries. The teenager was subsequently reunited with her family.

Later, a 29-year-old man, Justin Kalior, was arrested and charged with sexual contact with a minor and contributing to the delinquency of a minor. Though he denied being anything more than friends with the victim, the police report obtained by the website through an open records request showed that they had been dating, and through texts obtained via a consensual search of the victim's phone by the police, he had taken her to a party where alcohol was served that evening. Witness testimony obtained from the police report stated the twosome had "a physical altercation," and texts on Kalior's phone revealed a recent break-up between them. Kalinor wasn't charged with a crime related to the fall, and there's no word if the other two complaints have been dropped at press time.

If you or anyone you know has been a victim of sexual assault or may be the victim of child abuse, contact the relevant resources below:

• The Rape, Abuse & Incest National Network website or contact RAINN's National Helpline at 1-800-656-HOPE (4673).
• The Childhelp National Child Abuse Hotline at 1-800-4-A-Child (1-800-422-4453) or contact their live chat services.