Teen in human trafficking case missing in Las Vegas

A Las Vegas teenager caught up in a North Dakota human trafficking case is missing after her Monday morning flight landed early at McCarran International Airport and she fled before authorities could meet her, a Clark County spokesman said Friday.

Authorities were looking for the 16-year-old girl along with a suspect in the case, Las Vegan Kevin Jackson Fleming, 18. A warrant was issued for Fleming out of Minot, N.D. His 2015 Chrysler 200 was found in Las Vegas on Friday.

It wasn’t immediately clear if police believe they are together.

There were no new details on the case on Saturday afternoon, said Minot police Capt. John Klug.

Authorities in Idaho Falls, Idaho — where the female teen was found after she left North Dakota — and the Clark County Department of Juvenile Justice Services arranged the return of the girl, who has a history as a runaway, the county said.

Juvenile Justice Services staff did not find the girl when her flight landed at 11:43 a.m., 16 minutes before its planned arrival time.

Staffers were at the airport by 11:35 a.m., the county said. Airline staff had not been told the girl was to be handed over to authorities. She left the plane with the other passengers.

The 16-year-old girl is one of two female juveniles found earlier this month in the Minot human trafficking case. The second girl was 14.

A tip to authorities from the 14-year-old’s mother led to a sting operation that led to the arrest of Tayari Chanel Meadows, 20, of Las Vegas, Klug said. Police said the mother contacted them after emails led her to her daughter’s photo on Backtrack.com, a site often used to advertise prostitution.

Undercover officers set up a “date” through the website and were met by Meadows, who led them to the girl. The investigation also led police to the 16-year-old girl.

The 16-year-old was placed in a Minot foster home, which she fled. Idaho Falls police found her the next day, on April 9.

The girl “was not under probation, parole or supervision,” the county said, but authorities had agreed to pick her up at McCarran through the Interstate Compact for Juveniles, which aids in returning juveniles to their homes.

The Metropolitan Police Department was contacted “immediately,” the county said. Metro is not involved in the human trafficking case, but it has the girl listed as a runaway, department spokesman Larry Hadfield said Friday.

The Department of Juvenile Justice Services is working with authorities to locate the missing girl, the county said. It is “reviewing its protocols as a result of this incident and will revise any policies or practices as necessary.”

Vicki Greco, attorney for the 16-year-old’s family, declined to comment on the case until Monday.

The status of the 14-year-old girl was unclear on Friday.

Meadows and Fleming face felony human trafficking charges, Minot police said.

Review-Journal writer Wesley Juhl contributed to this report. Contact Ricardo Torres at rtorres@reviewjournal.com or 702-383-0381. Find him on Twitter: @rickytwrites.