Massive Sex-Trafficking Crackdown Leads To Bay Area Rescues

SAN FRANCISCO, CA — Eighty-five suspects face charges for human trafficking and child sexual exploitation — some of which took place in California — the FBI announced Monday. Law enforcement rescued 225 victims around the nation, including 84 children, during "Operation Cross Country," according to authorities. More than a dozen Bay Area agencies assisted in the sting.

The nationwide crackdown focused on finding victims of sex trafficking and arresting individuals and criminal enterprises involved, the FBI said. Federal authorities, their state and local partners, and the National Center for Missing and Exploited Children conducted 391 operations in the first two weeks of August.

Here in the San Francisco Bay Area, authorities said they located three adult victims, arrested three suspects, and recovered three guns during operations that ran from August 4 through August 7, and again from Thursday through Sunday. The FBI’s Victim Specialists were on hand for the operations and offered services to the recovered victims.

The average age of victims located during the operation was 15.5, while the youngest victim was 11 years old, according to the FBI.

“This operation not only resulted in the successful recovery of victims but in the arrests of suspected traffickers and the removal of guns off our Bay Area streets, making our community safer, “ said FBI Special Agent in Charge Sean Ragan. “I want to thank our law enforcement partners for their collaboration on this effort and for their continuous dedication to protecting victims and combatting sex trafficking across our region.”

“Human trafficking is among the most heinous crimes the FBI encounters,” said FBI Director Christopher Wray. “Unfortunately, such crimes—against both adults and children—are far more common than most people realize. As we did in this operation, the FBI and our partners will continue to find and arrest traffickers, identify and help victims, and raise awareness of the exploitation of our most vulnerable populations.”

More than 200 state, local, and federal partners and the National Center for Missing and Exploited Children conducted 391 operations over the two-week period. Locally, the participating agencies were the FBI San Francisco Field Office, San Jose Police Department, Milpitas Police Department, Santa Clara Police Department, Santa Clara County District Attorney’s Office, Oakland Police Department, South San Francisco Police Department, San Bruno Police Department, San Mateo County Sheriff’s Office, U.S. Probation Office, United States Attorney’s Office for the Northern District of California, Homeland Security Investigations, Northern California Regional Intelligence Center, Diplomatic Security Service.

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