Acting Attorney General Todd Blanche has appointed longtime federal prosecutor Alessandra Serano as the Justice Department’s national coordinator for human trafficking and child exploitation cases.
Serano, a DOJ veteran since 2003, has served in multiple U.S. Attorney’s Offices including the Southern District of California, the Virgin Islands, and most recently the Eastern District of Virginia. She had been working as senior counsel to the deputy attorney general and recently completed a temporary role with the Senate Judiciary Committee.
In her new position, Serano will oversee federal efforts to investigate and prosecute trafficking and child exploitation cases across the Justice Department and partner agencies, while also coordinating with the Office of Justice Programs on victim services funding. Within 120 days, she is expected to help deliver an updated DOJ strategy on combating trafficking and exploitation.
The role consolidates oversight of cases handled across all 93 U.S. Attorney’s Offices as well as specialized units within the DOJ Criminal Division, elevating the position within the deputy attorney general’s office.
Her appointment follows a recent DOJ announcement of an investigation into the status of roughly 300,000 unaccompanied immigrant children, including concerns that some may have been exploited through labor or sex trafficking via so-called “super sponsors.”
