Tube City Almanac

June 23, 2014

FBI, Local Police Target Child Sex Trafficking

Category: News || By Submitted Report

The Federal Bureau of Investigation, Allegheny County officials and local police last week launched a major effort to put an end to child sex trafficking in Western Pennsylvania and northern West Virginia.

Called "Operation Cross Country VIII," the effort resulted in 30 arrests, including those of three accused "pimps" and two adults accused of attempting to have sex with minors, said Scott S. Smith, special agent in charge of the FBI's Pittsburgh Field Office.

Names of the people arrested as part of the sweep were not released.

"Operation Cross Country has shown us with clarity that sex trafficking and child prostitution continues to plague our communities," Smith said. "Those who exploit children should know they will be sought out and brought to justice."

Monroeville and Pittsburgh police participated in the sweep, along with agents from the state Attorney General's Office and West Virginia State Police, among other agencies.

"These arrests send a strong message that it is unacceptable for women and children to be used to facilitate a criminal enterprise," Allegheny County District Attorney Stephen Zappala Jr. said.

Child predators are "the lowest thread" of life in Pennsylvania, said Kathleen Kane, Pennsylvania Attorney General, "and we will utilize every resource to stop and prosecute the individuals involved."

Operation Cross Country is part of the Innocence Lost National Initiative, which was established in 2003 by the FBI’s Criminal Investigative Division, in partnership with the U.S. Department of Justice and the National Center for Missing and Exploited Children, to address the growing problem of child prostitution.

To date, the FBI and its task force partners have recovered nearly 3,600 children from being exploited, said Gregory Heeb, FBI spokesman in Pittsburgh.

Nationally, the investigations and subsequent 1,450 convictions have resulted in lengthy sentences, including 14 life terms and the seizure of more than $3.1 million in assets.

Task force operations usually begin as local enforcement actions that target venues such as truck stops, motels, casinos, Internet websites and social media platforms used to market and facilitate child prostitution, Heeb said, based on intelligence gathered by officers working in their respective jurisdictions.

Initial arrests are often for violations of local and state laws relating to prostitution or solicitation, he said.

Information gleaned from those arrested frequently uncovers organized efforts to prostitute women and children across many states. FBI agents further develop this evidence in partnership with the responsible U.S. Attorney's Office and the federal Justice Department's Child Exploitation and Obscenity Section so that prosecutors can help bring federal charges in those cities where child prostitution occurs.

"This operation emphasizes the strong results that can be attained through law enforcement's commitment to combating human trafficking and bringing traffickers to justice," said David J. Hickton, U.S. Attorney for the Western District of Pennsylvania.






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