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FEDERAL BUREAU OF INVESTIGATION |
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3301 W. Memorial Road Oklahoma City, OK 73134 405-290-7770 Fax: 405-290-3885 |
IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Date: October 27, 2008
Contact: Gary Johnson, (405) 290-3678
OKLAHOMA CITY, OKLAHOMA – James E. Finch, Special Agent in Charge of the Federal Bureau of Investigation in Oklahoma, announced the arrests of two pimps and eighteen prostitutes as a result of participation with our local partners in Operation Cross Country II, a four-day national enforcement action.
Operation Cross Country II involved 92 federal, state and local law enforcement agencies working in 27 cities. Locally, this included Oklahoma City, Edmond and Midwest City. Agencies who participated in this area included Oklahoma City Police Department, Edmond Police Department, Midwest City Police Department, Norman Police Department, Cleveland County Sheriff’s Office and the FBI.
As a result of the local effort, eighteen prostitutes from ages 19 to 42 were arrested. Additionally, two pimps were arrested. Nationally, as a result of Operation Cross Country II, 642 individuals were arrested and most importantly, 47 children were recovered and removed from the cycle of victimization.
In June 2003, the FBI, in close cooperation with the Department of Justice’s Child Exploitation-Obscenity Section and the National Center for Missing and Exploited Children formed the Innocence Lost National Initiative to address criminal enterprises involved in the domestic sex trafficking of children. To date, 575 children have been recovered.