What Happens When an Anti-Sex Trafficking Operation Goes Wrong

<p>When “Alison” started working for Operation Underground Railroad, she wanted to make a difference in the lives of kids. She was a former Marine and social worker who’d seen the devastating effects that abuse could have on people. She wanted to stop it before it happened.</p><br><p>She ended up with a broken orbital bone, bleeding and vomiting in a gym after a training exercise gone wrong. This week on Cyber, Anna Merlan and Tim Marchman walk us through their latest reporting on Tim Ballard and Operation Underground Railroad.</p><br><p><strong>Stories discussed in this episode</strong></p><br><p><a href="https://www.vice.com/en/article/n7ekzx/tim-ballard-sound-of-freedom-grooming-sexual-abuse-undercover-couples-ruse-operation-underground-railroad" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank"><strong>A Private Island, Downloads From God, and the 'Couples Ruse': Inside the Dangerous World of Tim Ballard's Operation Underground Railroad</strong></a></p><br><p><a href="https://www.vice.com/en/article/4a378p/five-of-tim-ballards-alleged-victims-have-filed-a-lawsuit-against-him" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank"><strong>Five of Tim Ballard’s Alleged Victims Have Filed a Lawsuit Against Him</strong></a></p><br><p><a href="https://www.vice.com/en/article/k7zpbz/women-accuse-tim-ballard-of-spiritual-manipulation-grooming-and-sexual-misconduct" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank"><strong>Women Accuse Tim Ballard of ‘Spiritual Manipulation, Grooming, and Sexual Misconduct’</strong></a></p><br><p><a href="https://www.vice.com/en/article/dy3k3w/tiktok-bin-laden-palestine-moral-panic" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank"><strong>A Century-Old, Debunked Theory Is Fueling the TikTok Moral Panic</strong></a></p><br><p><strong>Cyber Live is coming to YouTube.</strong><a href="https://www.youtube.com/Motherboardtv" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank"><strong> Subscribe here</strong></a><strong> to be notified.</strong></p><br><p><strong>Subscribe to</strong><a href="https://itunes.apple.com/us/podcast/cyber/