Kiddy Corner Candies Cappers Captured

Law enforcement authorities have recovered 52 children and arrested 60 pimps allegedly involved in child prostitution, the FBI announced Monday.

Nationwide, a total of nearly 700 people have been busted over their involvement in a sex trafficing ring that spanded 36 cities and 30 FBI divisions. It is part of the FBI's ongoing Innocence Lost National Initiative, which was created in 2003.

Unbeknowst to many people, child prostitution is a humongeous problem in the United States.It is not just isolated to Cambodia and other parts of the world.

The initiative, conducted with assistance from the National Center for Missing and Exploited Children, has so far resulted in the recovery of almost 900 children, according to the FBI. It has also led to more than 500 convictions since 2003.

In Atlanta this week, federal and local law enforcement agents have arrested 35 people, mostly at truck stops, casinos, and motels-particularly near bars. All of the children rescued were American citizens. The victims tend to come from broken homes, making them easy targets for pimps-who sometimes are themselves children. Atlanta continues to hold the reigning crown for the center of both international and domestic child sex slavery and prostitution.

In Oklahoma, there were ads for more than a massage service or body rub on Backpage.com. For $175 for an hour "Cherokee Princess" will give you a full hour of adult pleasure. Because of the wording, there isn't anything illegal or alarming about the ads. However, law enforcement authorities can read between the lines.

As many of you know, Craigslist.com is another popular online classified advertising website. Oklahoma along with 41 other states requires a phone number and payment with a credit card for Craiglist users posting erotic service ads.

Among those children saved: in Everett and Seattle, local police and FBI agents secured nine children and arrested 23 adult prostitutes, also, a 12-year-old from Texas; a 13-year-old from Ohio; and a 14-year-old from Michigan.

With the changed lives rescued from a life of prostitution are the illegal assets of prostitution. FBI was able to confiscate assets in excess of $3 million. The FBI are calling this the 21st century of slavery. Federal prison time for those responsible for selling these children will likely be handed down. Those found guilty will certainly face life in prison.

The 13-17 year olds sold into sex slavery had been listed as missing for quite sometime. This nationwide bust will be able to close a lot of open cases and bring closure for countless parents.

It is estimated that within 48 hours of hitting the streets, one-third of runaways are lured into prostitution or pornography, according to research conducted by the Klaas Kids Foundation, a nonprofit established to help find and rescue missing children. Between 1.6 million and 2.8 million children run away in the U.S. annually, according to the foundation.

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