Tarrant County sheriff’s officials arrest 41 in anti-human trafficking sting operation
Deputies and investigators fanned out across Tarrant County and nabbed 41 men accused of buying sex from prostitutes.
All 41 are facing either prostitution or other criminal charges, according to a news release from the Tarrant County Sheriff’s Office.
Those with prostitution charges face a criminal misdemeanor, however, if they have been convicted on this charge before, the status of the crime can be enhanced.
Eight of those arrested face charges of online solicitation of a minor or prostitution involving a girl under the age of 18 and those are felony charges, according to the Tarrant County Sheriff’s Office.
The national initiative is held every year and focuses on curtailing the demand which drives sex trafficking, said David McClelland, Tarrant County Sheriff’s Office chief of staff.
This year, investigators with the Tarrant County Sheriff’s Department conducted the operation between the end of January and the beginning of this month, McClelland said.
“Human trafficking is modern-day slavery,” Tarrant County Sheriff Bill Waybourn said. “There are over 300,000 people being trafficked in Texas alone, with 79,000 being children. These criminals are in our state and in our county, and we will go after them with the gust of a hound dog. We will find you and we will work to prosecute each and every person that deals in this horrific crime.”
The Tarrant County Sheriff’s Department was one of three agencies recognized nationally in the initiative for their work in this effort, McClelland said.
This story was originally published February 7, 2020 at 5:13 PM.
