ORLANDO, Fla. – The U.S. Marshals announced that over 200 children in 16 different locations, including Orlando, were recovered in a national operation, according to a news release.
The 10-week “Operation We Will Find You” located and recovered 225 children who were endangered missing, including runaways and those abducted by non-custodial parents.
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According to the release, the operation was conducted from the following locations: Orlando, eastern Virginia, Washington D.C., Maryland, Massachusetts, South Carolina, New Orleans, San Antonio, Detroit, Yakima, Los Angeles, northern Ohio, Guam, Puerto Rico and the U.S. Virgin Islands.
Officials said 42 children were found outside the city where they went missing and 10 children were found outside of the country in Mexico. Marshals also arrested a Top 15 Most Wanted couple who fled to Mexico from Washington state with their five children, who they had taken into hiding.
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“The U.S. Marshals Service is fully committed to the important mission of protecting the American people, especially our most vulnerable population – our children,” said Ronald Davis, director of the Marshals Service. “The results of this operation underscore that commitment but also highlight the necessity of these critical efforts. Our continued success can only be achieved through our collaboration with state and local law enforcement agencies, and partnership with NCMEC. Together, the USMS and NCMEC have recovered over 3,100 missing children since the passage of the Justice for Victims of Trafficking Act in 2015.”
The operation was conducted with the help of state and local agencies across 16 federal judicial districts, officials said.
According to the release, the missing children were considered some of the most challenging recovery cases, based on indications of high-risk factors such as victimization of child sex trafficking, child exploitation, sexual abuse, physical abuse, and medical or mental health conditions.
“Operation We Will Find You is a great example of how the U.S. Marshals Service continues to prioritize child protection,” said NCMEC President & CEO Michelle DeLaune. “NCMEC is proud of our long-standing partnership with the USMS and commends them and the participating state and local agencies who helped recover the 225 endangered missing children.”
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