March 14, 2021 – 1:31 a.m
DALLAS-FORT WORTH — Thirty-one North Texas children are now safe following the month-long “Operation Missing in the Metroplex,” the Department of Justice announced Wednesday.
Federal agencies partnered with Arlington, Dallas, Fort Worth and Grand Prairie police departments to find the missing minors, some of whom had ties to sex trafficking.The U.S. Marshals and Homeland Security Investigations led the operation.
“To observe law enforcement partnerships and community concerns culminate into such a successful recovery outcome is rewarding,” said Acting U.S. Marshal Quintella Downs-Bradshaw. “Victims should know they are not forgotten, there is hope and a way to return home.”
At least seven of the 31 children were girls rescued from sex trafficking. One was just 13 years old. Two others were 15, three were 16, and one was 17. At least two were found with ties to prostitution.
The other 24 children recovered are now with friends, relatives or with legal guardians and have been removed from the missing children databases.
The Department of Justice says it records more than 420,000 reports of missing children each year.