Grand Island teen accused of victimizing five girls faces trial in adult court

GRAND ISLAND, Neb. (KSNB) - A Grand Island teenager accused of victimizing five young girls now faces trial in adult court.

Israel Trautman, 18, was arrested after Grand Island investigators found dozens of sexually explicit pictures on his cell phone and electronic devices. An arrest affidavit lists five girls as victims, two of which were 14 years old, the other victims were 13, 17 and 18.

Prosecutors charged Trautman with nine counts of human trafficking of a minor, one count of human trafficking, five counts of visual depiction of sexually explicit conduct, four counts of child abuse and two counts of first degree sexual assault.

Trautman last week waived a probable cause hearing and his case was transferred to Hall County District Court for possible trial.

Trautman is in the Hall County Department of Corrections on a $1 million bond.

Trautman was arrested on June 1, 2022, in relation to a case of human sex trafficking of a minor and visual depiction of explicit conduct in relation to receiving or soliciting images of a minor.

Following that arrest, a search warrant was obtained for Trautman’s residence including electronic devices. Subsequent to that investigation, the Grand Island Police Department’s Cyber Investigator, developed evidence to believe that Trautman solicited or received photos from 11 other minor victims.

Grand Island Police Captain Jim Duering told Local4 News in cases like this fear can play a role in keeping victims from coming forward.

“Really at its base, this is an exploitation case, and exploitation really does not happen without fear,” Duering said. “So I think fear plays a huge role in these types of cases, and I think a case like this in which we have a suspect who was arrested, who was taken off the street and given a very high bond should help reduce that fear and let victims know that it’s okay to come forward, we are here to protect them.”

Duering also noted that parents can help protect their kids from crimes like to ones committed by Trautman.

“I think the first step is for parents to have that conversation with their children, the things they can do the things they can not, warning about what can happen regardless of whoever they think is on the other end phone,” Duering said.

This was a lengthy investigation that demonstrates the ability of a single suspect to prey on multiple youth within a community. The outcome of this investigation is a step forward in building a safer community for our youth. If young people are being exploited, it is a crime and should be reported by calling your local police or the FBI Hotline at 1-800-Call-FBI.