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Over the last five days 18, people were arrested in San Joaquin County for attempting to have sexual contact with a minor – tying the San Joaquin County Sheriff’s Department’s record for an operation of that type.
And with additional resources allocated to the investigation including some provided from the Federal government, the net for nabbing those who would wish to harm a minor was much larger this time around.
According to Lathrop Police Chief Ryan Biedermann, the operation also included representatives from the Department of Homeland Security, the California Department of Justice, and even the Sacramento County Sheriff’s Office that aided in apprehending somebody who was aggressively pursuing the undercover decoy online but was outside of the operation’s jurisdiction.
Kevin Malone, Chairman of the U.S. Institute Against Human Trafficking, issued the following statement following passage of Senate Bill 145 in the California Assembly to remove the requirement that adults convicted of having sex with a teenager between the ages 14 to 17 must register as a sex-offender.
BAKERSFIELD, Calif. (KGET) — Detectives arrested 15 people, including a California Highway Patrol officer and a prison employee, after they allegedly tried to meet minors to engage in sex acts.
Kern County Sheriff’s Office investigators posed as children online to meet the suspected predators, who ranged in age from 21 to 54 years old.
“The detectives received numerous correspondence from child predators, who agreed to meet in order to engage in lewd acts with a child,” a sheriff’s release said. “Undercover detectives subsequently arrested the suspects when they arrived at the meeting location, while others were arrested at their homes.”
Orange County, California– A minor is safe after the persistence of a Sanger Police Officer Shaela Edwards, who followed leads when she suspected a sexual assault victim was also involved in human trafficking. The victim is now safe, and the suspected has been arrested and charged with Human Trafficking of a minor.
SAN LUIS OBISPO COUNTY, Calif. – SLO County District Attorney Dan Dow announced that seven men are facing charges for solicitation of prostitution and one is being convicted for human trafficking following an investigation earlier this year. These eight cases are the product of a statewide campaign called Operation Reclaim and Rebuild 2020.
Sacramento, California– El Dorado County sheriff deputies have arrested a man on suspicion of kidnapping and trafficking two girls who ran away from a local group home Monday.
Lake County, California– Human trafficking victims in California can now qualify for up to $20,000 in income loss paid through the California Victim Compensation Board. Signed by Gov. Gavin Newsom, Assembly Bill 629 (Smith and Gonzalez) has gone into effect to address the lasting repercussions of trafficking.
SACRAMENTO, Calif. — A federal judge on Monday sentenced a Chico man to 14 years in prison for sex trafficking of a minor and distribution of meth to a person under 21, according to the U.S. Attorney McGregor W. Scott. According to court documents and evidence presented at the trial, in July and August 2017, 25-year-old Christopher Ramonaguilar Lawrence, of Chico, recruited a then 17-year-old girl to engage in prostitution for his financial benefit.
Fremont, California — A Bay Area man is in federal custody and awaiting extradition to Texas, where he is set to face federal charges that allege he set up sex trafficking websites on an international scale, raking in $21 million in proceeds within a two-year span.
San Bernardino County, California– An undercover sting in which police posed as prostitutes at a Redlands hotel to bust “Johns” who solicited sex for money on Wednesday netted 13 suspects, ranging in age from 17 to 63, officials said. San Bernardino County Human Trafficking Task Force investigators conducted what they called an “in-call hotel ‘John’ operation,” the department said in a written statement. “During the operation, undercover officers were deployed at a local hotel to pose as prostitutes through online advertisements,” according to the statement. Online ads are a primary tool for those involved in the human trafficking of underage victims, officials added.
Finding new and innovative ways to combat the demand for purchased sex, raise awareness to this nationwide epidemic, and provide safe environments for victims.
