Crime & Safety

51 Arrested During Operation Broken Heart In Houston

Operation Broken Heart led to the arrest of 51 people involved in online solicitation, sex trafficking of minors, and child porn, police say

HOUSTON — A two-month multi-agency operation targeting child predators netted 51 arrests, including a Houston firefighter and a teacher, officials announced Thursday. Operation Broken Heart, which was spearheaded by the Houston Metro Internet Crimes Against Children Task Force and the Internet Crimes Against Children Task Force, targeted individuals involved in online solicitation of minors, sex trafficking of minors, and child pornography, officials said.

"This is not just something that is relegated to your next door neighbor or one town away," Houston Police Sergeant Luis Menendez-Sierra, who works closely wioth ICAC, said. "Parents need to be vigilant."

Menedez-Sierra said the operation took places through April and May, and involved multiple agencies.

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One of those arrested was a man who drove from California to Houston to meet a child for sexual relations, Menedez-Sierra said.

Many of the arrests centered in Montgomery County, which included a 39-year-old woman who worked as a private tutor in The Woodlands, officials said.

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"You can't fix a pedophile," said Montgomery County DA Brett Ligon, where 25 of those alleged predators were arrested.

Operation Broken Heart is a nationwide operation that targets child sexual predators each year. In 2018, local law enforcement agencies arrested more than 60 men and women in the Houston area, and hundreds nationwide for various child pornography charges.

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