ATLANTA — The Atlanta Police Department on Friday announced that they had arrested four men in a trafficking investigation involving four young local victims, with one suspect still at large that they're asking for the public's help in finding.
A press conference was held at 10:30 a.m. The department announced the arrests of Taalib Blount (born 1977), Levi Sears (born 2001), Talmes Smith III (born 1975) and Albert Wells (born 2000) in the case. They all face charges of rape and human trafficking related crimes.
Atlanta Police Investigator Tracy Lewis, speaking at the news conference, said they initially identified a victim while responding to Children's Healthcare of Atlanta - Hughes Spalding on Feb. 29. They have since identified three other girls who were trafficking victims.
According to police, the victims range in age from 14-16 years old, and they were trafficked in both DeKalb County and Fulton County.
The suspect still at large was identified as Harold Poole. His picture can be seen below. Police ask that if you see Poole or know where he is to call 911, the APD Special Victims Unit at 404-546-5531 or Atlanta Crime Stoppers at 404-577-8477 where reports can be submitted anonymously.
A reward of up to $2,000 is available for information on Poole.
The full news conference can be re-watched in the video player above this story or the YouTube player below.
APD Investigator Lewis said at the news conference that the first victim recovered at Children's - Hughes Spalding in February was 15 years old and had been reported missing two months earlier, in December 2023. She described how the girl "went to a place of refuge, and the person she went to seek refuge from was nice to her, called 911 for her."
Investigators said the girl was trafficked at an America's Best Value Inn on Memorial Drive in DeKalb County. She was then taken to the Adams House apartments on Campbellton Road in Atlanta. Lewis said the girl managed to escape one of the apartments, went to a neighbor's and had them call 911.
Police described how both the first 15-year-old victim and the other three victims identified were trafficked both at two specific locations, one in DeKalb and one in Atlanta, as well as taken to places like truck stops and gas stations "where they would have to service" men sexually.
The 15-year-old was credited by police for remembering many details about her situation.
"She was absolutely wonderful," Lewis said. "She's a very sweet young lady, with a big future ahead of her. We just pray that she'll be okay from this... she was very knowledgeable about what was going on, she made sure that she remembered things and stuff like that -- she was excellent. She remembered tag numbers and stuff like that -- because she watches crime shows, she told us -- so she kind of tried to remember things just in case something happened to her, we would be able to find out who did it and where she was."
Lewis, asked about how the girls were taken into trafficking, did not say specifically but mentioned many victims come from the foster system or get recruited over social media through various forms of manipulation.
Police said the 15-year-old specifically identified Wells as a suspect, and that she was able to get police in contact with a second victim who helped lead to the other three suspects.
Casey Benson, an investigator with the DeKalb County District Attorney's Office, said this case is a "prime example of why it's critical that law enforcement prioritize human trafficking investigations."
"Traffickers prey on the most vulnerable people in our community, people who oftentimes feel like they have no one to trust and nowhere to turn," he said. "Today, we stand united to send a message to traffickers -- that if you victimize people in our community, we will find you, we will stop you, and we will hold you accountable."
Re-watch the press conference in the video below:
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