In a recent major crackdown on sex-trafficking operations in the U.S., the FBI has rescued 84 minors.
According to RelevantMagazine.com, the FBI has also arrested 120 human traffickers.
FBI Director Christopher Wray made a statement on the recent crackdown and rescue, applauding the rescue of the children, but also reinforcing the continued need to find and prosecute perpetrators of human trafficking.
“We at the FBI have no greater mission than to protect our nation’s children from harm,” said Wray. “Unfortunately, the number of traffickers arrested—and the number of children recovered—reinforces why we need to continue to do this important work.”
"This operation isn't just about taking traffickers off the street,” Wray continued. “It's about making sure we offer help and a way out to these young victims who find themselves caught in a vicious cycle of abuse."
Among the minors rescued were children as young as a five-year-old girl and her three-month-old sister.
The recent crackdown was part of a major FBI operation to combat human trafficking called Innocence Lost National Initiative, which was begun in 2003. It reportedly included 55 field offices, 78 Child Exploitation Task Forces, along with 500 other law enforcement agencies, according to NBC News.
Photo courtesy: ©Thinkstock/BugTiger
Publication date: October 20, 2017
