A Texas “faith-based organization” meant to take care of child survivors of sex trafficking, was found to be trafficking the girls instead of caring for them.
Seven girls, ages 11 to 17, were discovered to have been victimized by nine employees at The Refuge Ranch in Bastrop, according to U.S. District Judge Janis Jack, who called an emergency court hearing Thursday.
The Texas Tribune reports that the children remained in the facility for more than a month after the abuse was first reported before they were removed. A current Refuge Ranch employee reported to state authorities on Jan. 24 that the girls were being medically neglected, as well as physically and sexually abused. However, the court and those who monitor children in foster care were not notified about the abuse until Thursday. The Refuge Ranch is contracted by the Texas Department of Family and Protective Services (DFPS).
According to a letter filed from DFPS, a former staffer sold nude photos of two of the children in The Refuge’s care and used the money to buy drugs and alcohol, which were then given to the children. Local law enforcement and the Texas Department of Public Safety were then immediately notified.
During the court hearing, Judge Jack asked if Gov. Greg Abbott had seen the letter. She was not given an answer.
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"The reports of child sex trafficking at The Refuge in Bastrop are abhorrent," Abbott said in a statement Thursday. "Child abuse of any kind won’t be tolerated in the state of Texas, and we are committed to ensuring these despicable perpetrators are brought to justice and punished to the fullest extent of the law."
Rich Richman, a DFPS associate commissioner for child protective investigations, told the court the children had not been immediately removed from The Refuge Ranch because it was believed that the person responsible for the abuse had been fired.
It was later discovered that it wasn’t just one employee abusing the children—it was several, and many were not removed from the facility. One suspect has been arrested, but none of the suspects have been publicly named, the Tribune reports.
The DFPS investigation “discovered several additional staff members still employed at the operation appeared to be involved, and that many of them were related to one another by blood or marriage and/or were cohabiting,” according to the letter.
The children were not removed from The Refuge Ranch until Wednesday. Eight of the nine survivors have been placed in other facilities specializing in victims of human trafficking.
“This is just shocking and shameful. Children are being subjected to terrible abuse in state care, and the agencies say nothing,” Paul Yetter, an attorney who represents foster care children in the federal lawsuit, said in a statement Thursday. “Texas is failing its most basic duty: keep these innocent children safe. And we all know who pays the price. Without the vigilance of the court monitors, and the judge’s jumping into immediate action, who knows what kind of further abuse would be happening.”
Brooke Crowder is the "mind" behind The Refuge Ranch. In 2018, Crowder told CBN News, “God downloaded the plans” to build the facility.
Crowder said that costs were kept down by building partnerships with organizations dedicated to helping children; for example, the onsite charter school was available because of a partnership with the University of Texas. She claimed at the time that medical care was provided by a “federally qualified health care clinic,” and said she hoped the rural location would give the children a sense of safety and community.
On The Refuge Ranch website, Crowder says: “Other than being with her family, her greatest joy is watching girls who were once traumatized by severe victimization learn to live again and grow into the person and purpose God created.”
Crowder obviously fell down on her job.
