A man from Tulsa has been arrested on human trafficking charges in Cherokee County after an incident on Thursday night.

Cherokee County Sheriff’s Investigators were made aware that a 23 year-old woman who had been reported missing from Coweta, Oklahoma since December 6th could've been in the area. Detectives located the woman at an area Gentlemen’s Club, where she had been reportedly driven by a Tulsa man who had physically beat her, forced her to dance for money which he took and had been preventing her from leaving or contacting her family.

Gary Ballard, 29, of Tulsa, is being held in the Cherokee County Jail on allegations of Aggravated Human Trafficking and Aggravated Kidnapping. His bond has been set at $200,000.00. According to Cherokee County Sheriff David Groves, Ballard has had a violent history, including a prior conviction for a shooting with intent to kill in Oklahoma.

Groves said this incident proves the need for resources available to get out of dangerous, violent, or abusive relationships.