A two-week FBI law enforcement operation in the metro area of Atlanta resulted in ten children being rescued from what has been described as a “sex trafficking” criminal organization. The children are reported to be “safe.”
The law enforcement operation involved several agencies, including “the FBI, the Atlanta Police Department, the Fulton County Sheriff’s Office, and the Dunwoody Police Department.” The coordinated operation has been given the name “Operation Cross Country,” and it is reported to be part of a “nationwide campaign to combat child sex trafficking.” As disclosed by law enforcement officials, the two-week Atlanta operation is “now in its 13th year after starting as a 2003 initiative to find minors who had been sexually exploited.”
Child sex trafficking and human trafficking appear to be pervasive throughout the United States. Under the unified efforts of Operation Cross Country, “Across the country, federal, state, and local law enforcement agents reportedly identified and rescued more than 200 victims and identified or arrested 126 people accused of child sexual exploitation and human trafficking offenses.” Additionally, “Sixty-eight others were identified or arrested on charges of trafficking.”
Two people were charged in the metro Atlanta area with “enticement and interference of custody.” Details of the arrests and circumstances have not been released by relevant law enforcement officials. Investigations are “ongoing.” As reported by the FBI, “one actively-missing youth in the area during the operation has been found.”
FBI Director Christopher Wray is quoted as saying: “Human trafficking is a grave violation of human rights that preys on the most vulnerable members of our society.” Wray added that “these atrocities will not be tolerated.”
