- According to officials, detainees, who have yet to be named, include people in positions of public trust, such as kindergarten teachers, high school coaches, youth church coordinators, and firefighters.
U.S. Attorneys for the Southern and Northern Districts of Mississippi Baxter Kruger and Scott Leary, respectively, announced with Homeland Security Investigations (HSI) Special Agent Matthew Reidell, Attorney General Lynn Fitch, and Oxford Police Department Chief Jeff McCutchen an ongoing joint operation targeting child sexual exploitation called “Operation Muddy Waters” on Monday at the Oxford Police Department.
Operation Muddy Waters is a federal and state interagency operation spanning the entire state of Mississippi that has led to 69 arrests, with the possibility of more.
According to the officials, detainees, who have yet to be named, include people in positions of public trust, such as kindergarten teachers, high school coaches, youth church coordinators, and firefighters.
Illegal aliens who crossed state lines are also among the detainees.
“In just two weeks, Operation Muddy Waters to date has resulted in 69 arrests for child exploitation offenses, the solicitation of minors, the possession and distribution of child sexual abuse material, and violations involving previously convicted sex offenders,” Special Agent Reidell said.
Over the scope of the operation, law enforcement executed more than a dozen search warrants, conducted undercover online investigations, and seized dozens of devices believed to have child exploitation materials on it.
“These cases are complex, but our mission is clear,” Reidell said. “Identify offenders, rescue victims, and work with prosecutors to bring those responsible to justice.”
Fitch described how one common tactic of predators – sextortion – works.
“They lure these children in. They take pictures. They say if you don’t send us the money, we’re gonna send these pictures out to your family, to your school, to your friends. And they leverage our children for their money,” Fitch said.
She also pleaded with social media and tech companies for their cooperation, asking them to be “good corporate citizens.”
Officials repeatedly stressed that stopping exploitation requires help from the public.
“If a citizen sees something, they have got to say something,” Leary said.
McCutchen added that protecting children is “not just a law enforcement responsibility.
“It’s a community responsibility. It takes engaged parents, vigilant teachers, caring neighbors, responsible businesses and trusted partnerships,” he explained.
Fitch put it simply.
“Every tip is important. You could be saving a life. You could be protecting a child,” the AG said.
The officials also advised parents to know what devices and apps their children have and how they are using them.
Kruger warned potential future predators, saying, “If you exploit a child, you traffic a child, or you prey on the most vulnerable among us, we’ll use every lawful means available to find you, to prosecute you, and to have you sentenced to the toughest that the law allows.”
