Florida's historic sting rescues dozens of kids and arrests alleged predators in nation's 'largest' child rescue sweep

On Monday, the U.S. Marshals Service Middle District of Florida stated that its two-week initiative, Operation Dragon Eye, had three key objectives: saving missing children, providing them with services, and deterring bad actors.

'Many of these kids have painful, disastrous situations, but at least today we've rescued them, and we now can work towards recovery.'

The USMS announced that along with 20 federal, state, and local government agencies, the Tampa Bay area mission recovered 60 "critically missing" children, or "those at risk of crimes of violence or those with other elevated risk factors such as substance abuse, sexual exploitation, crime exposure, or domestic violence."

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The operation also resulted in the arrest of eight individuals who are facing charges including human trafficking, child endangerment, narcotics possession, and custodial interference. Their bonds ranged from no bond to $250 million.

During a Monday press conference, Attorney General James Uthmeier noted that the initiative was the "largest child rescue operation not just in Florida's history, but in the United States' history."

He explained that some of the children recovered were the victims of trafficking.

"Many of these kids have been through painful, disastrous situations, but at least today we've rescued them, and we now can work towards recovery," Uthmeier said.

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The minors, ranging from 9 to 17 years old, were provided with medical and psychological care, nourishment, and appropriate placement.

U.S. Marshal William Berger stated, "I have to curtail my enthusiasm because of the sensitivity of the victims involved in this operation, but the successful recovery of 60 missing children, complemented with the arrest of eight individuals, including child predators, signifies the most successful missing child recovery effort in the history of the United States Marshals Service; or to my knowledge, any other similar operation held in the United States."

Callahan Walsh, the executive director of the National Center for Missing & Exploited Children, said that the operation's success was "a testament to what's possible when agencies unite with a shared mission to protect children."

"We're proud to have supported the U.S. Marshals Service and our partners in Florida to recover these missing children and provide critical support to those who need it most. NCMEC is honored to stand alongside these teams and will continue working tirelessly to help make sure that every child has a safe childhood," Walsh added.

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