It was a five-day law enforcement operation.
A total of 27 missing children have been recovered in Virginia thanks to a five-day law enforcement operation dubbed "Operation Find Our Children." The operation also resulted in the location of six children who were reported missing but were discovered to be with their legal guardian.
The operation was led by U.S. Deputy Marshals from both the eastern and western districts of Virginia. Members of the U.S. Marshals Service Capital Area Regional Fugitive Task Force, police officers, and detectives from a variety of agencies on the federal, state, and local levels were all behind the efforts of the operation.
US Marshals find 27 missing children in Virginia
— NCMEC (@MissingKids) November 2, 2020
Deputy @USMarshalsHQ led the five-day effort dubbed "Operation Find Our Children." They collaborated with the agency's Fugitive Task Force, @MissingKids and state and local agencies. https://t.co/3S5BIXVr6z
Members of the Virginia Department of Social Services, a team of medical professionals, and experts from the National Center for Missing and Exploited Children were also involved.
This latest success comes on the heels of "Operation Not Forgotten," which took place in Georgia in August. During that operation, 39 missing children were recovered across Georgia.
The United States Department of Justice Deputy Attorney General, Jeffrey A. Rosen, put out a statement sharing the following:
“The Department of Justice is dedicated to protecting the most vulnerable children in our society and ‘Operation Find Our Children’ does just that. While this Virginia operation is the most recent recovery of endangered and missing children led by the U.S. Marshals Service this year, we have also recovered more than 440 kids in Georgia, Ohio, Indiana, Louisiana, and other states. Because of this initiative, the recovered children are now out of harm’s way.”
The United States Marshals Service is just one of many organizations leading the way in recovering missing and exploited children. Since 2005, the U.S. Marshals Service has helped save over 2,000 missing children, according to the Department of Justice. And in the past five years alone, of all the cases the department has received, 75% of the cases have been solved, most of which were done in under a week.
To read the full press release from the Department of Justice, click here. These latest efforts of reunited missing children with loved ones and taking vulnerable minors out of harm's way are just one of the latest wins in a year that has been especially difficult for many.
