msnbc goes undercover and investigates "sex slaves, the teen trade." for most americans, stories of teenage girls being trafficked in america seem incredible. >> people who are even college educated think trafficking only happens in india and china. just because you make $100,000 a year and live in a fancy house doesn't mean that it won't happen to your kids. >> by all accounts the picture perfect streets of birmingham, michigan are an ideal place to raise children. it's hometown usa. >> i was an irish catholic, middle class girl that lived in the suburbs. i had a nice family and went to church. i was a good kid. i did not party and i wasn't loose. i was just a normal, every day kid. >> back in 1981, teresa flores

back to msnbc undercover. ♪ >>> there is nothing more shocking than understanding that this young womanill call dana, was a highly recruited college athlete just a few short years ago. we refrain from mentioning specifics. >> i had scholarship offers from i can't even count how many universities. i could have basically played sports any where that i wanted to. >> we met dana had what she show admits is the lowest point of her life. strung out on heroin and selling her body for cash. she was arrested in a federal sting aimed at rescuing trafficked girls. >> she did not work for a pimp, she had a little heroin, she was scared at first. >> between tears and lock up, she admitted to being addicted to heroin after a devastating sports injury. she said this was not the life she planned. >> i was a really happy go lucky kid, outgoing, had a lot of friends, played a lot of sports. >> raised in rural michigan, dana personified the all american girl. dana was not just good, she was exceptional. >> i was always a bright child, very athletic. anything i picked up i excelled at very quickly. >> look

. >> msnbc goes undercover to investigate "sex slaves in america." >>> hello, i'm meredith vieira. every year human rights advocates estimate almost a million women worldwide are illegally bought and sold into sexual slavery. what you might not know is that over 17,000 of them end up right here in the united states. in the next hour, you will hear some of their harrowing stories. to protect these women, their names have been changed. it's a story that begins in the ruins of the shattered soviet empire and ends in heartland america. >> i was watching a lot of tv shows about human trafficking, and i could never believe that could happen to me. and when i get in this situation, i believe this can happen anytime. >> this woman we'll call katya now shares her destiny with a million young women and girls bought and sold in the global sex industry. it has long been a problem, particularly in katya's home country of ukraine where young women enticed by fake job ads and slick recruiters end up modern day sex slaves. >> salary starts from $200 a month. >> single mother sophia left her son in