Keeping
Our Children Safe, Protecting
the ‘Most Vulnerable Among Us’
 |
FBI Photo |
(FBI) The exploitation
of children has unfortunately become a “growth industry,” according
to FBI Director Robert S. Mueller, III, but the Bureau is “working
every day to find and stop those who prey on our children.”
Speaking
recently at the Dallas Children’s Advocacy Center Crimes
Against Children Conference, Mueller noted how pervasive these
crimes have become. “In just the past decade, we have
moved from lone predators with limited reach to global communities
of pedophiles on the Internet,” he said. “We have
moved from back-alley bookstores to criminal enterprises that
treat children as merely another commodity for sale in the
global marketplace. We have moved from videos in plain brown
packages to encrypted websites, flash drives, and cell phones
capable of storing thousands of images.”
How big is
the problem? A recent five-day sweep of 16 cities conducted
through our Innocence Lost program, which identifies and disrupts
child prostitution rings, resulted in the arrests of 389 people
and the recovery of 21 children.
Earlier
this week, the U.S. Attorney’s Office in the Central District
of California capped an eight-month, first-of-its-kind investigation by the
Bureau and U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement by charging 52 defendants
with possession of child pornography. The defendants were allegedly using peer-to-peer
Internet networks to exchange graphic images and videos.
And these
are just two examples—there are many more. But while
the scope of the problem is vast, Mueller said, “we are
using new tools, new technology, and new partnerships” to
help put a stop to crimes against children.
The Bureau
battles crimes against children on several fronts, with partnerships
that range from local police departments to private Internet service providers
to global law enforcement organizations. For instance:
Innocence
Lost program features 24 task forces and working groups around
the country involving federal, state, and local law enforcement
and U.S. Atttorney’s
Offices. Our Innocence Lost Child Prostitution Database puts more than
17,000 records of children and predators at the fingertips of investigators.
According to Mueller, since the program began in 2003, we have—together
with our partners—recovered 433 children, convicted 308 criminals,
and dismantled 32 criminal organizations.
Child Abduction
Rapid Deployment Teams move quickly in critical cases when
a child is missing. “In the past two years,” Mueller
said, “these teams have been deployed 33 times to assist
state and local law enforcement, with 15 children safely recovered.”
Innocent
Images National Initiative targets predators who use the Internet
to exploit children. Investigators may pose as children or
collectors to lure predators into the open. Or coordinate with
the National Center for Missing and Exploited Children to identify
children and adults featured in child pornography. Or train
police officers to investigate cases in their own jurisdictions.
In
the end, though, the battle against those who prey on children
is often a frustrating one. Said Mueller, “There are
days…when it seems
there are more predators than police officers, prosecutors, and child advocates
combined. But these predators cannot match our dedication.”
He added, “We
reaffirm our commitment to protecting the most vulnerable among
us. We reaffirm our commitment to sweeping sexual predators
off the street, off the Internet, and out of our children’s
lives.”