We caught up with the brilliant and insightful Jeff Keith a few weeks ago and have shared our conversation below.

Alright, Jeff thanks for taking the time to share your stories and insights with us today. Alright, so you had your idea and then what happened? Can you walk us through the story of how you went from just an idea to executing on the idea

I embarked on a journey with a mission to combat human trafficking head-on. I was first confronted by sex trafficking while leading a mission trip to India. When I first saw girls as young as 9 or 10 trapped as sex-slaves in a red-light district, seeing God’s children held as sex slaves my life changed forever. I knew that my remaining years on this earth had to be about bringing “freedom to the captives.”

My path began with five years of dedicated research and the establishment of crucial partnerships with key stakeholders, including law enforcement, public service, ministry, and the military. I soon recognized a critical gap in the fight against trafficking: while these authorities were tasked with solving the issue, they often lacked the essential resources and specialized knowledge needed to do so effectively.

Human traffickers can target anyone, but certain groups are more vulnerable, such as young individuals with high ACE scores (a measure of neglect and abuse in childhood), those experiencing homelessness, foster care youths, and those involved in the juvenile justice system. Among the most disproportionately affected are minority populations, specifically Black, Latino, and Native American girls from underrepresented and underserved communities.

Shockingly, victims are often openly advertised online, with approximately 150,000 new online advertisements selling women and children for sex in the U.S. each day. Law enforcement agencies found themselves stretched thin, lacking the time, resources, and skills required to locate, rescue, and provide support for these victims. It was clear that a fresh and courageous approach was needed to make a meaningful impact.

After conducting several meetings with former military special operations professionals, I became acutely aware of the critical role a group of highly skilled technical analysts could play in assisting chronically under-resourced law enforcement offices. Their expertise in leveraging strategic technology-based efforts could significantly enhance the fight against domestic sex trafficking, with a particular emphasis on rescuing minors here in the United States.

Since 2018, we have identified over 700 sex trafficking victims (with more being added daily) across 44 states and supported 185 law enforcement sting operations. Due to the complicated nature, length, and sensitivities of trafficking cases, we won’t always know the details of victim recoveries and trafficker arrests that result from our support. We do know, however, that over the past 5 years our work has resulted in numerous victims being rescued and traffickers being arrested.

Guardian Group’s new and recent innovative solution was a first-ever 24/7 crowdsourcing tool (Project 1591) that leverages the power of trained volunteers to exponentially increase the number of child sex trafficking victims we can find online. Guardian Group staff intel analysts then vet the findings and pass to our law enforcement partners for their corroboration and action. This is our version of an Amber Alert for law enforcement.

The impact of Project 1591 has been nothing short of extraordinary. In the first quarter of 2023 alone, the initiative resulted in a remarkable 200% increase in victim identifications, a trend expected to grow exponentially by year-end. This remarkable achievement can be attributed to the innovative and groundbreaking model that Project 1591 has developed to combat human trafficking.

Now, as we witness the success of Project 1591, we face the challenge of scaling up our efforts to reach even more victims. Our goal is to make a tangible impact on the lives of those who have been trapped in a cycle of exploitation and abuse.

My personal motto, “Until All Are Free,” serves as a constant reminder of the commitment and dedication we bring to the table in this fight. It is the driving force behind our work and the driving force behind Project 1591’s mission.

As always, we appreciate you sharing your insights and we’ve got a few more questions for you, but before we get to all of that can you take a minute to introduce yourself and give our readers some of your back background and context?

Guardian Group’s mission is to prevent and disrupt the sex trafficking of women and children in the United States. Our vision is that every child in the US lives free from sex trafficking.

Guardian Group is a force multiplier for resource-constrained law enforcement agencies. By leveraging our expertise from years in elite military and intelligence units, Guardian Group provides detailed leads (using open-source analysis techniques) to law enforcement and service providers at no cost. Our work allows law enforcement to bypass the time-consuming and highly skilled investigative phase and go directly into recovery and sting operations – increasing their likelihood of success and decreasing the staff and budget required.

Because Guardian Group works on the front end of the problem to help law enforcement identify, vet, analyze and prep tons of opensource data we will never have definitive numbers regarding the outcomes from the sting operations. For the integrity of the judicial process law enforcement must protect the knowledge and results of individual cases, stings and more, to protect the victim and the judicial process of a case that will stand up in court for a trafficker prosecution. Also, trafficking prosecutions are notoriously difficult and long, and law enforcement offices are highly motivated to ensure they’re building a case that will stand up in court.

Because of the trusted relationships we have with our law enforcement partners we occasionally get a bit of insight like the following: In one single county in Oregon, a senior District Attorney publicly stated that our involvement and leads passed over a two-year period led to the successful prosecution of 15 traffickers and recovery of 54 trafficked victims. “Our success is dependent on our partnership with Guardian Group.”

This is just one huge win, and we know there are many more like that given the sheer numbers of lead reports given each month, that also lead to stings, individual arrests of traffickers and recovery of victims. While ideally, we would have instant feedback for each of our leads, we do know from our law enforcement partners that our information is of high value and affecting their ability to arrest traffickers and recover victims.

The feeling of changing the life of another person I remember vividly, and years later knowing that four other people’s lives were also changed, is another overwhelming feeling. A missing girl was brought to Guardian Group’s attention, and local law enforcement did not have the capability or resources to help.

With our immediate intervention and identification of the missing girl’s location, Guardian Group filled the gap between law enforcement and the missing girl and her family. This girl was on the verge of being sold for sex, and was most likely to move to another location, so getting her back to her family would have been extremely difficult.

After passing our information to our law enforcement partner in the adjacent state and working with them to locate her, this girl was reunited with her family and subsequently the trafficker was arrested and prosecuted for his crimes.

Because of law enforcement’s inability to share details of ongoing cases, we lacked a line of sight into the effects of our work with this girl. In the days following the missing girl’s return to her hometown, however, police discovered that four other girls who had been with the missing girl still remained in the hotel room, being prepped to be sold for sex in another state. The additional would-be victims were also saved and returned to their families.

What do you think helped you build your reputation within your market?

Self-promotion is not part of what we do. The “me monsters” are not allowed.

Partnering with the right people and groups is important to us.

It is extremely important for us to be accountable for money and metrics.

We spent years building trust and a valuable product/service and one of very few nonprofits that hold the highest level of accountability and transparency with all of the major third-party charity evaluators.

We don’t overstate our involvement

Do you have any insights you can share related to maintaining high team morale?

We don’t care who gets credit. There is no competition or hoarding among us. Harry Truman said, “It’s amazing what you can accomplish if you don’t care who gets credit.”.

Credit is given away freely and encouragement is generously given.

Leadership should be shared and servant-based.

Values we hold dear:

Ferocious Resolve & Perseverance: We are committed to each other, our partners, and the cause. We are relentless and optimistic as we solve problems and proactively build a better future. We learn quickly, fail fast, flex and innovate.

Quiet Professionalism & Servant Leadership: We will work with an attitude of humility, combined with a non-wavering commitment to integrity and operational excellence.

Trust & Transparency: We do what we say we will do. We are honest and transparent. We actively drive partner trust and confidence by using our core values to achieve Guardian Group’s mission.

Quality Impact: We are committed to a level of effectiveness and efficiency that helps achieve quality results, which will make a direct and immediate impact on the sex trafficking industry.

Intense Leverage: We are committed to maximizing every dollar and minute donated to Guardian Group. Combined with a professional staff we achieve a positive success rate on the reduction of sex trafficking with those we serve. We are committed to achieving high visibility for all its partners because awareness of our influential partnerships is key to taking this mission throughout the country.

Contact Info:

• Website: www.guardiangroup.org
• Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/guardiangroupus/
• Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/theguardiangroupus
• Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/company/10224498
• Twitter: https://twitter.com/GuardianGroupGG
• Youtube: @GuardianGroupUS