Ont. couple accused of human trafficking plead not guilty as trial gets underway

Marred by several delays, the trial of alleged human traffickers Lauriston and Amber Maloney is underway Monday in a Bradford courtroom, with both entering a not guilty plea.

The married couple was arrested last summer after police attended their home in Essa Township.

Amber Maloney was charged with trafficking and materially benefitting from the trafficking of a person and administering a noxious substance.

Her husband, Lauriston, was charged with two counts of assault and forcible confinement, along with the same trafficking counts as his wife.

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At the time of her arrest, Amber Maloney owned and operated a camp for children on the autism spectrum, called Beating the Odds, on the same two-acre property in Utopia where the couple lived with their children.

Prior to his arrest, Lauriston Maloney ran a local construction and renovation company.

Hours before the couple was criminally charged, provincial police had issued a rare public safety advisory notifying the community of Lauriston Maloney’s presence at the unlicensed children’s camp, confirming he was a convicted sex offender.

Court documents revealed Lauriston Maloney was first convicted about 20 years ago for pimping out an underage girl as part of an escort service he ran in the Mississauga area.

Nottawasaga OPP previously said he was also convicted about 10 years ago for trafficking young women.

Police have confirmed the children of the Beating the Odds camp were not victims in this investigation.

Weeks after they were taken into custody, Amber and Lauriston Maloney were released on bail to their respective parents.

The allegations against both the accused have not been tested in court.