TALLAHASSEE, Fla. (WCTV) – Leon County, capital city and state law enforcement agencies busted a slew of offenders allegedly connected to human trafficking in the Big Bend, officials said Thursday.
In a joint press conference, leaders shared the results of two operations. The first task force, Operation Firewall, focused on tracking down individuals who target children and minors online. The other, Operation Grinch, aimed to capture individuals connected to soliciting prostitution and human trafficking, according to the Leon County Sheriff’s Office.
LCSO, the Tallahassee Police Department, the U.S. Department of Homeland Security, the Florida Department of Law Enforcement and the FBI all contributed to the investigations, according to LCSO. The 2nd Judicial Circuit of the State Attorney’s Office and the Northern District of Florida U.S. Attorney’s Office also aided in the operations. There were 16 men arrested in total.
TPD Chief Lawrence Revell said it’s important to collaborate to solve the problem of human trafficking.
“If we’re going to solve these issues, it’s going to take all of us,” he said. “This problem has been here. This problem continues to persist. This problem continues to get bigger, there are so many predators out there that we don’t know about.”
The police chief said focusing on gaming systems was key to catching these alleged perpetrators.
“The predators will get on the gaming systems or get on the computer, the chat rooms and then start conversations with our youth and they [minors] don’t realize that they’re talking to a predator. They think they’re talking to another child,” Revell said.
LCSO shared a video during the press conference showing a closer look at the investigations and capturing the moments when several of the suspects were arrested.
Leon County Sheriff Walt McNeil said his deputies work to meet with parents and prevent their kids’ online conversations from going too far.
“Trying to coordinate with families, get the information of families about that reality is perhaps some of the most difficult things for us to do and then to try to if we can at some point have an intervention with that child because if we learn of it we’re not going to allow that child to continue to have those conversations,” said McNeil.
LCSO said they need the community’s help to fight back against these criminals. They urge parents to talk with their kids about internet safety.
Anyone who has any information on suspicious activity relating to human trafficking should reach out to their local police immediately.
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