Sting Operations (2017)
All of the items below are related to Child Sex Sting Operations. Sting means the FBI or local law enforcement are using websites, social media, or messenger programs to lure suspected child predators to a location for arrest.
I typically will do a google search to 6-8 pages deep and include as many big sting operations as possible. It is fairly easy to find 250+ people being captured in a given year but I suspect that I maybe only capturing 10-20% of the total landscape. I do not include any Human Trafficking or related general prostitution stings. General common sense should come into play. If it is too good to be true it probably is a sting operation. Most captured in these Sting operations will walk away with a felony conviction, loss of $$, and sex offender registration. Though below only shows a couple hundred individuals captured I wouldn’t doubt the true number caught up in stings to be 1000+ per year (I’m guessing an average of 10-50 per state).
- 2017 Feb: Operation Be My Felontine – 11 Men arrested in Vancouver, WA. Another Net Nanny operation in Washington State. Ages unknown (not published).
- 2017 Feb: Operation Cupid’s Arrow – 12 Men arrested in Tallahassee, FL. Ages 21 to 70.
- 2017 March: Gainesville Sting – Sting in Gainesville, FL nabs 5 men with ages of 22-59.
- 2017 March: Lincolnton Sting – LINCOLNTON, NC sting captured 8 men including former teacher. Ages unknown. This is an expanding sting operation out of North Carolina.
- 2017 April: Net Nanny 7 (WA) – Pierce County, WA. Captured 12 people. Most, if not all with $500k bail.
- 2017 April: Merced Operation – California gets in the act and arrests 10 men with two month operation in Merced. Ages from 23 – 61.
- 2017 May: Florida Sting – Stings in Florida continue and are expanding beyond the child sex sting. This one nabbed 39, but only 19 for traveling to meet a minor.
- 2017 May: Operation Watchdog – St. John’s County (Jacksonville). Another 21 arrested in online child sex sting. Age range from 21 – 61.
- 2017 June: Marietta Georgia – Sting in Georgia nets 15 more. Ages 20-59.
- 2017 June: Operation Spider Bite – New York Sting operation bust 12 people including a Corrections Captain. Ages 21-63.
- 2017 June: Operation Broken Heart 4 – Two month operation (April-May) which netted 1012 arrest of “suspected child predators” in 40 states.The task forces also delivered 1,245 presentations on Internet safety to more than 99,000 youth and adults during these two months.
- 2017 July: Net Nanny 8 (WA), Additional Article – In Tri-Cities area of Washington State this captured 26 individuals ranging from age 20 to 75. This time the sting was expanded to 5-10 webpages beyond the usual craigslist and backpages. Brings total capture to 115 over 2 year period for the Net Nanny operation in Washington State. Update Article 1, Article 2, Article 3.
- Treasure Florida Kids II – Lake County, Florida brings in 14 more including a teacher and Universal Studios employee. Do they really make a difference? They are “almost always a slam dunk for prosecutors.”
- 2017 August: Operation Cruel Summer – Another St. John’s County (Jacksonville) online child sex sting operation with catchy name captures another 17 people. Age range from 19 – 60. Four are convicted felons and several others have been convicted of past child crimes. Detectives went on chat sites. They have a nice graphic/poster of those caught.
- 2017 August: Utah Sting – In St. George Utah, 10 men were arrested. No names, ages or photos shown.
- 2017 August: Osceola County Sting – Yet another one in Florida, near Orlando captures 17 more. A joint effort between 11 agencies.
- 2017 September: Lincoln County Sting – Lincoln County, NC. Six men arrested ages unknown. This was a two month long investigation.
- 2017 September: Virgina Sting – Sting captures “Teacher of the Year” in Virginia.
- 2017 October: Operation Cross Country XI, FBI Story – Arrested 120 traffickers and rescued 84 exploited juveniles. Big Annual operation. Often this is another multi-agency sting operation.
- 2017 October: Oklahoma Sting – Resulted in 12 Arrests. Limited content in article. May have been a part of Op. Cross Country above.
- 2017 October: Net Nanny 9 (WA) – A revisit to Kitsap County where all the cases from 2015 have been resolved (all nine were guilty via plea or trial). This time 20 “offenders” were captured including someone caught in the first sting operation whom actually received the lightest sentence (14 months). According to the WSP the Net Nanny operation has captured 135 offenders over its two year operational life.
- 2017 November: Operation Hidden Guardian – Georgia sting operation captures 21. Ages range from 22 to 55. Update on plea agreements where five people pleaded to lesser chargers in a federal courtroom. The lesser chargers are still felonies with potential for up to five years in prison.
- 2017 November: Brentwood Sting – Tennessee operation naps 22 in what they are calling a trafficking operation but it was really a STING. Ages not provided but some were under ICE custody.
- 2017 November: Operation Kidsafe – Oregon City, Oregon sting operation led to arrest of 9 men ranging in age from 21 to 66.
- 2017 November: Underage Meetup – Portland, OR sting captures one person age 41. Sentenced to 35 months which is actually a light sentence based on other stings.
- 2017 December: Albany Sting – Four arrested in Colonie, NY. Ages range from 20-68.
- 2017 December: Operation Safety Net – A nine month investigation in New Jersey nabs 79 people. From ages 14 on up.
- 2017 December:Net Nanny 10 (WA) – Another sting in Washington, this time in two new counties: Whatcom and Skagit. Arrested 20 men with ages ranging from 22-66. Net Nanny total is 155 offenders (159 according to WSP).
Total Arrested: 304 + 1012 (Broken Heart IV) + 79 (Operation Safety Net)