More than 200 missing or exploited children are in safe hands thanks to the FBI’s Metro Atlanta Child Exploitation and Human Trafficking task force.
In a statement released last week, the FBI Atlanta Field Office disclosed the results of its May operation to locate children in the Atlanta metro area deemed vulnerable to sexual predators. This collaborative effort included cooperation between the FBI and other local, state, and federal agencies.
Operation Safe Summer’s goal was to “combat all forms of child exploitation and make our community safer for our children heading into the summer months,” the FBI statement read.
According to the National Center for Missing and Exploited Children, 1 in 7 runaway children are victims of sex trafficking. In 2018, more than 23,500 runaway children were reported. It was estimated that about 420 missing children were located in the Atlanta metro area.
“Thanks to the month-long efforts of our partners, 231 children are no longer vulnerable to predators who seek to exploit them,” Special Agent Chris Hacker said. “Operation Safe Summer is another example of the FBI’s commitment to protecting our children before they become victims.”
