LANSING - The eyes and ears of Michigan's highways - the trucking industry has been called upon to help in the fight against human trafficking.

The Michigan State Police Commercial Vehicle Enforcement Division has partnered with Truckers Against Trafficking, or TAT, to educate, equip and mobilize members of the trucking industry to combat human trafficking.

Founded in 2009, TAT is a 501c3 non-profit organization that has developed materials, training videos and flyers that contain indicators or possible warning signs.

"Folks that we work with everyday - the commercial vehicle drivers, the semi drivers out there, might have contact with this and be able to report suspicious behaviors," said Captain Michael Krumm, CVED Commander, Michigan State Police.

Adequate training for personnel is funded by the state police and is conducted in house. 16 district coordinators are then sent out to travel plazas where they provide awareness to all carriers at local truck stops.

"With as many trucks that are on the roads, if the word gets out, you know...truckers do pay attention to what's going on around them, so that is a real good partnership to get involved in - with the truckers," said Rick Omiljan, a truck driver for Rapid Shred.

The Michigan Trucking Association has also shown strong support and is eager to play a role in the prevention.

"No matter what your role is, I think this impacts you & it's like I told my staff the other day is that you'll never look at another rest area or truck stop the same once you see some of the things that go on at some of these locations," said Krumm.

In 2014 alone, 519 calls were made to the anonymous tip line citing 131 of them were reported cases.

And although the Michigan Attorney General's Office has established a special unit to indict human traffickers, Captain Krumm believes in focusing on rescuing rather than prosecuting.