AURORA | The Aurora Police Department’s Human Trafficking Unit was recognized last month for its efforts to investigate cases while prioritizing support for survivors, department officials said.
The recognition came during an awards ceremony held last month by From Silenced to Saved, a Denver-based nonprofit that provides services to survivors of human trafficking, along with the FBI Denver Field Office.
Eight trafficking activists and investigators across Colorado were honored for their work combating human trafficking, including Detective Adam Hughes of Aurora’s recently created Human Trafficking Unit.
“While many work in this field professionally, our investigators and law enforcement partners honored earlier this month demonstrate a level of commitment that goes well beyond the job description,” Aurora police Investigations Bureau Cmdr. Marc Paolino said in a statement. “Their work reflects a calling rooted in dignity, justice and the belief that every survivor deserves validation and a path toward healing.”
The Aurora Police Department formally established a dedicated Human Trafficking Unit in September in response to what it described as a need for specialized investigators to handle the complex and survivor-centered nature of trafficking cases.
Police spokesperson Joe Moylan said in a statement that Aurora is one of the few agencies in Colorado with a dedicated human trafficking unit. Two detectives and a supervising sergeant comprise the Aurora unit.
Police analysis found that people under 21 are most vulnerable to commercial sexual exploitation and that much of the illegal activity is facilitated online.
The Aurora unit partners with the department’s Internet Crimes Against Children Unit and works through the Colorado Cyber Guardian Task Force to draw on local, state and federal investigative resources, Moylan said.
Since its creation, the unit has been involved in 11 cases, identified and removed 15 victims and filed cases against eight suspects, police said. Additional investigations remain active.
Among those arrested was Avian Mayo, 30, who police said engaged in illegal activity while traveling between Colorado and Texas, including pimping adults, trafficking a minor, narcotics offenses, robberies and assaults.
Aurora police began investigating Mayo in February 2025, a case officials said helped prompt the creation of the dedicated unit.
Mayo was arrested in May of last year by the New Braunfels Police Department after a high-speed chase in Comal County, Texas. He was wanted in Texas on narcotics, traffic and pimping charges and was also held on an Aurora warrant for pimping, police said.
Despite being jailed out of state, Mayo continued to facilitate criminal activity, including the trafficking of a 17-year-old girl in Colorado, through jail phone calls to two alleged accomplices in Aurora, police said.
Isaac Taylor, 25, and Brisa Sierra-Silva, 24, were charged along with Mayo on Aug. 28 in Adams District Court with pimping and human trafficking of a minor for sexual servitude.
“The Avian Mayo case demonstrates just how difficult it is to detect and investigate these disturbing crimes given the transient nature of offenders and the array of crimes they engage in, but that challenge only strengthens our resolve,” Investigations Division Deputy Chief Mark Hildebrand said in a statement. “Behind every case is a person whose safety, dignity and future have been threatened. We are committed to giving survivors a voice, providing support and protection, and holding those who exploit our community accountable.”
Police said the Human Trafficking Unit follows a two-pronged model focused on targeted enforcement and victim removal and stabilization. Investigators proactively target people who solicit, facilitate or profit from commercial sexual exploitation while also working with community and government partners to remove victims from exploitative situations and connect them with long-term support services.
In 2015, some police, court and sheriff agencies across the metro area adopted a “high-risk victim model,” state anti-trafficking experts say, forming multidisciplinary teams that include law enforcement, child welfare, prosecutors, health care providers and victim advocates.
Arapahoe and Adams County sheriff departments have special human trafficking investigation units. Douglas County, and now Aurora Police, also have victim units that specialize in human trafficking. They all work with the FBI as well.
Experts say most trafficking recruitment now occurs online through social media such as Discord or Instagram and messaging apps, where traffickers pose as romantic partners, friends or people presenting opportunities such as modeling, acting or other chances at a “better life.”
Recruitment can occur in popular kid games such as Roblox, which is currently under investigation for a child-grooming sting, according to state FBI officials.
Concerned parents can visit the FBI’s “Parents’ Guide to Internet Safety” to learn what to look for.
Once recruited, victims may be moved between cities or states.
Colorado sits within a broader trafficking circuit that includes Texas, California, Oklahoma and Nevada because of its interstate highways.