A concentrated 2-week campaign to find children reported missing in North Florida is being hailed as a tremendous success. More than two dozen federal, state and local law enforcement agencies have just completed a massive effort to locate and recover mission children across 14 North Florida counties. The announcement came Thursday, Dec. 18 at the Tallahassee Federal Courthouse by Acting U. S. Marshall Greg Leljedal.
“This was the most successful missing child operation ever conducted in North Florida. Forty-three endangered kids are now home for the holidays.”
The children ranged in age from 1 to 17. Leon County Sheriff’s Office Investigator Rachel Buell said even in cases where a family member illegally takes the child, the chances that child will be trafficked increases greatly.
“Somewhere around the 80% percentage if a child is missing, whether they ran away on their own or a family member took them, whatever the case may be, they’re at an 80% risk to be trafficked.”
Nine suspects are now under arrest, and more arrests could come. Some of the children were found as far away as Mississippi, Louisiana and Tennessee.
