Local

Attendant on Seattle flight saves teen from human trafficking

A flight attendant saved a teenage girl from human trafficking after sensing something was wrong on a flight from Seattle to San Francisco.

Alaska Airlines flight attendant Shelia Fedrick first became concerned when she spotted a disheveled girl traveling with a well-dressed older man on a flight ahead of the Super Bowl in 2016.

She said the man wouldn’t let her talk to the girl.

"Something in the back of my mind said something is not right," Fedrick told station WTSP.

Frederick was able to tell the girl under her breath to go to the bathroom. The veteran flight attendant put a note on the mirror for her.

"She wrote on the note she needed help," Frederick said.

Frederick notified the pilot who alerted police. She had just saved a teenage girl from being a victim of human trafficking.

"I've been a flight attendant for ten years and its like I am going all the way back to when I was in training and I was like I could have seen these young girls and young boys and didn't even know," Frederick said.

Hundreds of flight attendants for multiple airlines receive training to spot the signs for human trafficking. Trainings advise aircraft personnel to watch for someone who may seem to be nervous or controlled, who is bruised or disheveled or who won’t answer questions, make eye contact or speak for him or herself.