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I recently watched an episode of CSI:NY and a major plot point was that sex slaves were forced to take Heroin, presumably to make them more compliant and to cause an addiction that prevents them from leaving.

Is there any truth behind this? Are victims of human trafficking commonly forced onto addictive drugs?

At least one website supports this:

In some cases, a prostitute will be forced by a pimp or other person to take drugs to ensure that they do as they are told and have sex with people. This is particularly true in the case of young people and children.

But I didn't see a source for the claim.

MrHen
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    We tend not to consider claims from fiction as being notable, because things that happen in fiction don't necessarily happen in real life. Also fiction usually deals only with a single story. Can you point us to a claim that sex slaves are *commonly* given heroin? – DJClayworth May 28 '17 at 15:21
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    I can confirm that I have heard of sex traffickers forcing their victims to take drugs. [Here's an example](http://alcoholrehab.com/drug-addiction/sexual-exploitation-and-substance-abuse/). – Oddthinking May 28 '17 at 17:08
  • @DJClayworth I guess I'm not sure how to source claims that seem like urban legends. Multiple people in the room emphatically claimed this does happen after I questioned it. Does that count? – MrHen May 28 '17 at 19:49
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    @MrHen No, but including the relevant quote from Oddthinking's link would. – Brythan May 29 '17 at 00:43
  • Many people believe that there's a ccausative relation between sex work and drug use (in either direction), so a reasonable person would be likely to regard this as based on reality. – Andrew Grimm May 29 '17 at 07:44
  • @Oddthinking I'm sure it happens in some cases, but the way the question is worded OP claims that it happens in all or most cases. – jwenting May 29 '17 at 08:14
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    The big trick would be establishing causation and correlation. Homeless people, people in situations where they routinely suffer pain, and people in lower economic situations are more likely to be doing drugs. People in prostitution likely fall into those categories. So you'd have to establish that they are being hooked by the dealers and for a reason. – Sean Duggan May 29 '17 at 13:52
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    There are probably a lot of sex slaves around the globe with different conditions for their slavery. It seems almost without doubt that at least 1 slave is being forced to take drugs. I would be surprised otherwise. – Mark Rogers May 29 '17 at 15:09
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    @MrHen That's a great source. I think the question is going to come down to how frequently this happens, whether "in some cases" counts as "commonly". – DJClayworth May 29 '17 at 16:07

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