(COLORADO SPRINGS) — January is Human Trafficking Awareness Month and this week, FOX21 News will be hosting a primetime panel on Thursday, Jan. 26 at 9 p.m. called, Human Trafficking: Building Awareness. FOX21 News will speak with experts on the topic about what to look out for, and how to identify these crimes.

During the forum, FOX21 Evening Anchors, Scott Kilbury and Taylor Bishop will be discussing the prevalence of human trafficking in Colorado, and how local and state leaders are working to prevent people from becoming victims.

All this month, FOX21 News and Loving Living Local have been interviewing experts on the topic, helping to dispel myths, while also providing resources for the public.

According to the National Human Trafficking Hotline for Colorado, there were 150 cases of human trafficking discovered in the state in 2021, with 240 victims, 106 of which were sex trafficking cases.

In 2022, the Department of Homeland Security arrested 3,600 suspected human traffickers, but there are likely many more that have not been reported.

There are estimated to be nearly 25 million people, adults and children, subject to human trafficking around the world, according to the State Department.

To help FOX21 News discuss this important topic, we gathered a group of experts to join in on the conversation.

The experts are; Kara Napolitano, Research and Training Manager for the Laboratory to Combat Human Trafficking, Maria Trujillo, Human Trafficking Program Manager for the Colorado Human Trafficking Council, and Sandy Storm, Director of Strategic Impact for the Deliver Fund.

Human Trafficking: Building Awareness will air on Thursday, Jan. 26 from 9 p.m. to 10 p.m. in place of FOX21’s regularly scheduled 9 p.m. newscast.