17-Year-Old Rescued, Four Arrested In St. Louis As Part Of FBI Child Trafficking Sting

ST. LOUIS, MO — The Federal Bureau of Investigation’s St. Louis Child Exploitation Task Force rescued a 17-year-old girl and arrested four traffickers as part of Operation Cross Country XI, a nationwide crackdown on child trafficking.

Altogether, 84 minors were rescued and 120 people were arrested around the country as part of the effort. Fifty-five FBI field offices, along with the National Center for Missing and Exploited Children and 78 state and local task forces participated in the operation, which ran from Oct. 12-15.

Zachary Lowe, acting special agent in charge of FBI St. Louis, credits the participation of hundreds of local law enforcement divisions and international partners with the operation’s success and stressed that the FBI’s mission to stop child trafficking is ongoing.

“While Operation Cross Country is a focused and coordinated effort nationwide, our Child Exploitation Task Force, which includes local and state law enforcement partners, work tirelessly year round to rescue children from sex trafficking,” he said.

Watch: FBI Announces Results Of Operation Cross Country XI: Underage Sex Trafficking Crackdown

Operation Cross Country, part of the FBI’s Innocence Lost National Initiative, targeted places where human trafficking is common like hotels, casinos and truck stops, places where people can move anonymously and money can flow freely. The average age of victims rescued by the FBI was 15 years old, while the youngest victim was just 3 months old.

“We at the FBI have no greater mission than to protect our nation’s children from harm. Unfortunately, the number of traffickers arrested—and the number of children recovered—reinforces why we need to continue to do this important work,” said FBI Director Christopher Wray in a statement. “This operation isn't just about taking traffickers off the street. 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."

Victims were offered medical and mental heath assistance from state and federal agencies, including the FBI’s Victim Services Division.

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“Child sex trafficking is happening in every community across America, and at the National Center for Missing & Exploited Children, we’re working to combat this problem every day,” said NCMEC President and CEO John Clark. “We’re proud to work with the FBI on Operation Cross Country to help find and recover child victims. We hope OCC generates more awareness about this crisis impacting our nation’s children.”

Image courtesy of the FBI