State Police Target Child Predators

The Connecticut State Police joined with the National Internet Crimes Against Children Task Force for “Operation Broken Heart 2” to target child predators during the months of April and May 2015.

Operation Broken Heart 2 is a two-month long investigative effort of the 61 coordinated task forces across the United States – including the Connecticut State Police Computer Crimes Unit and affiliate agencies – representing more than 3,300 federal, state, and local law enforcement agencies.

The goal of this concentrated effort is to arrest as many offenders as possible who: possess, manufacture, and distribute child pornography; engage in online enticement of children for sexual purposes; engage in the commercial sexual exploitation of children (commonly referred to as child prostitution); and engage in child sex tourism (traveling abroad for the purpose of sexually abusing foreign children).

The Connecticut State Police have made five arrests so far for April and May, including ones in Danbury, Meriden, West Haven, Milford, and Ellington.

“Targeting child predators is a priority for the State Police Computer Crimes Unit,” Sgt. Kevin Albanese said in a prepared statement. “Detectives involved in child predator cases are meticulous in their investigations, which often take many months to conclude. Arresting even just one predator can make a world of difference in the lives of children.”

Statistics collected by the 61 coordinated task forces throughout the months of April and May will be collected and shared with the national Office of Juvenile Justice and Delinquency Prevention for release when designating June 2015 “National Internet Safety Month.”