The Ontario government is investing $64,300 to support Angels of Hope Against Human Trafficking’s Northeastern Ontario Youth Compassion Groups and Human Trafficking Workshops.
The Civil Remedies Grant Program funding will help develop innovative bilingual human trafficking and sexual exploitation prevention and awareness workshops for at-risk youth aged 9 to 17 in urban and rural Northeastern Ontario.
The grant is part of a $1.5 million reinvestment of cash and proceeds seized from criminals to help local partners fight back against crime and victimization that threaten their communities.
“Crime should never pay, and these seized funds will help communities support victims of crime and fight back to break the cycle of offending,” said Vic Fedeli, MPP for Nipissing.
“Our government is committed to strengthening every available tool, including civil forfeiture, to help police, prosecutors and local partners confront and dismantle the criminal networks that prey on our communities,” said Attorney General Doug Downey. “
Changes to strengthen the Civil Remedies Act passed under the 2020 Smarter and Stronger Justice Act allow personal property, such as cash or cars used by criminals for illegal activities, to be forfeited without a court order in cases where no interested person disputes the forfeiture.
Eligible applicants for the Civil Remedies Grant Program include Ontario and First Nations Police Services, not-for-profit groups, community agencies and Indigenous communities and organizations that help victims of crime or help to prevent crime.
Funding through the Civil Remedies Grant Program is being made available to law enforcement agencies and community partners for 18 community projects focused on helping victims of crime and strengthening local capacity to prevent intimate partner, family, and gun and gang violence.
In 2020, the Ontario government reinvested $2.5 million in cash and proceeds from criminals to support 33 local projects aimed at fighting human trafficking in communities across the province
