Jacksonville FBI identifies two child sex trafficking pimps

Two child sex trafficking “pimps” have been identified by Jacksonville’s F-B-I following a nationwide operation that netted 25 local arrests.

We first told you Tuesday about Operation Cross Country, which resulted in 150 arrests nationwide and 149 child victims identified. 25 suspects were arrested in Duval County and one child victim was recovered.

New today, the Jacksonville F-B-I says they will not be releasing the names of those arrested in this operation, citing the ongoing investigation. I’m told they come from all walks of life, and some were actually previous victims of child sex trafficking themselves.

“This is something that goes on every day, 24/7, throughout the United States, people prey on our children,” says Jacksonville FBI Special Agent in Charge Michelle Klimt.

The 25 local arrests include prostitution, drugs, and local warrants, according to Klimt. She says drugs are tied very closely with this crime, including heroin, meth, and cocaine. The child victims are offered drug treatment, along with other medical and social assistance, when they’re recovered by the FBI.

VIDEO:  Operation Cross Country enforcement

Interviews with the victim and suspects led to the intelligence identifying the two child sex trafficking “pimps”, but Klimt says they have not been arrested at this time.

This year’s Operation Cross Country- in its ninth year- was the largest yet, according to the FBI.

“We get better at what we do, the intelligence that we collect and the people we interview.  We learn, and we garner more information, so we’re more successful in these types of operations,” Klimt says.

I asked her what- if not these operations- will it take to finally put an end to the crime altogether.

“It takes for society to say no. It takes for families to be able to have normal lives,” she says.

Klimt says many of the victims face an unstable home life, suffering abuse or even prostitution at the hands of their family or family friends. Others were advertised through social media and networking sites.

She says the local arrests are not connected, although there are often cases where a child is peddled up and down the East Coast. They focus on areas with substantial highways and airports. Klimt would not comment on whether any of the local arrests were believed to be involved in multi-state activity.

Klimt says the FBI will continue these kinds of operations to get pimps off the street and stop children from being exploited.