CLEVELAND -- Gov. Ted Strickland signed a new law that cracks down on human trafficking, and a NewsChannel5 investigation found that it is a much bigger problem than you might think, and Ohio plays a big role.

In a small Geauga County town, investigators suspected women were being exploited by a human trafficking operation.

Seven years ago, a NewsChannel5 investigation found women being sold into prostitution and brought into the United States.

The discovery prompted Senate hearings.

It's a $9 billion industry and exploits 12 million people worldwide. Last summer, the Silver Spring Spa was put out of business.

"They would be dropped off by a cab and four ladies were living together in the basement of this place that had a camera on the front door and very little room to move within the place," said Geauga County prosecutor David Joyce.

Jeff Martin, who worked next door, said, "I was here the whole time they were here. They had a lot of traffic going in and out but it was hard to tell illegal activity was going on."

But leading immigration attorneys say human trafficking is happening on a wide scale in Ohio.

"I believe, especially in Ohio, it's an extremely serious issue. Oddly enough, Toledo, Ohio was ranked two years in a row by the FBI as the most human-trafficked city in the United States," said attorney Jonathan Bartell.

The new law that Strickland signed mandates prison time for human traffickers.