How the Children Are Being Found

Child trafficking has been a serious problem, yet the public is largely unaware. How were so many people misled about its scale? A decade ago, concerns were raised about “Pizzagate” were largely dismissed. But then years of Democrat policiesallowed children to be smuggled into our country where they were placed with unvetted sponsors, many of whom were later identified as cartel and criminal gang traffickers, and the children were sold into various forms of slavery, including the worst kind. President Trump has been outspoken against p*dophilia and human trafficking for decades. He has been committed to ending the threat to children and making this country safer for them. Those are not just words. he has taken steps that are having proven results. How is his Administration correcting the wrongs being done to children? Who are the ones out front and center driving this effort to find the missing children?

FBI Rescuing Children

Official DOJ and FBI reports, including those related to Operation Iron Pursuit, describe coordinated work across all 56 FBI field offices, U.S. Attorneys’ offices, state and local agencies, HSI, the U.S. Marshals Service, Victim Services, and partners such as the National Center for Missing & Exploited Children (NCMEC). Recent recoveries in New York involved nearly 40 agencies. Homeland Security Task Forces (HSTFs) provide additional nationwide coordination across more than 20 federal agencies and 440 state and local partners, with child trafficking among the priority categories.

FBI Taking down the 764 Network

How We Got Here

How long has child trafficking been a serious problem, and how were so many people misled about its scale? A decade ago, concerns raised under the “Pizzagate” label were largely dismissed. Under subsequent Democratic administrations, open-border policies contributed to large numbers of unaccompanied minors being smuggled into the country by cartel and gang members and then released to traffickers or unvetted sponsors through the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS).

All children—our children and the children of the world—deserve truth and justice.

How are they correcting the wrongs being done to children? Who are the ones out front and center driving this effort to find the missing children?

Current Efforts to Correct the Wrongs

Who is leading the push to locate missing children? Homeland Security Task Forces, co-led by the FBI and HSI, operate a nationwide network of 30 regional task forces. They prioritize dismantling human trafficking and smuggling networks, especially those involving children. Specific rescue operations are generally not announced in advance for operational security, but public reports show results. Examples include a July 2026 Los Angeles operation that arrested 10 gang members on sex-trafficking charges and identified at least 51 victims; a January surge with 507 arrests and 257 victims identified (including 27 children); and recent actions such as 144 arrests in the Las Vegas “Operation Loaded Dice,” accompanied by major seizures. Details typically emerge after operations conclude.

Officials describe the process of locating and rescuing missing and unaccompanied children as a multi-agency effort involving welfare checks, sponsor investigations, intelligence sharing, task-force operations, victim-identification work with the National Center for Missing & Exploited Children (NCMEC) and local partners, and targeted enforcement against traffickers and smugglers. Many specific rescues remain non-public until completed for operational security. Progress reports focus on the numbers of children located, arrests of predators and traffickers, and improved sponsor vetting under the current administration. Primary official channels for the latest information include the DOJ, DHS/HSI, FBI, and HHS websites and their social media accounts, with the June 11, 2026 DOJ-DHS-HHS press conference, the October 1, 2026 HHS release on fraud in the prior Unaccompanied Alien Children program, and recent operations such as the Long Island Missing Children Recovery Operation among the most direct public explanations of these efforts.

Fraud in the Prior Unaccompanied Minor System

According to an official HHS Office of Refugee Resettlement (ORR) memorandum, six common forms of fraud existed in the prior Unaccompanied Alien Children (UAC) program: fraudulent identity documents (the most common, including fake IDs, licenses, passports, and birth certificates); manipulated photographs; address fraud; fingerprint fraud; sponsors failing to disclose all household members; and children misrepresenting their age. These practices enabled releases to unvetted sponsors and, in some cases, led to abuse or worse.

Under Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr., HHS strengthened sponsor vetting beginning in 2025 with mandatory household fingerprints, biometrics, and ID checks. It also cleared a 65,000-report backlog. ORR has located roughly 157,000 previously released children and continues searching for more than 85,000 others. FBI Director Kash Patel has overseen intensified efforts to locate missing children and arrest thousands of predators and traffickers. The Department of Justice continues related prosecutions.

If not for the change in administration under President Trump, many of these children would not have been reunited with their families. FBI reports under Director Patel cite thousands of predator and trafficker arrests (with notable increases over prior periods), thousands of children located or rescued, millions of online predator accounts dismantled, and ongoing multi-agency recoveries of dozens of missing children in recent weeks. The administration has emphasized completing the full effort.

How is the DoJ contributing to this?
What is Logan’s Law and how will it help?

Supporting Tools: Logan’s Law and HSTF Results

Logan’s Law is a proposed bill that would create a public national registry of violent offenders (those with force-or-threat convictions resulting in sentences of 180 days or more). It would improve data sharing and accountability. Attorney General Pam Bondi’s team, including Deputy Attorney General Todd Blanche, has supported the concept as a way to keep repeat offenders off the streets by closing record gaps. The measure would mandate better interstate and federal sharing of fingerprints and records. FBI Director Patel has described fuller data access as critical to the Bureau’s work. Because HSTFs (FBI-HSI co-led) target trafficking and child exploitation among other transnational crimes, improved records would help identify predators with violent histories.

Formed under Executive Order 14159 in January 2025 and fully operational by September of that year, the HSTFs (30 regional plus 29 satellite offices) have reported substantial results. The September 2025 surge alone produced 3,266 arrests and the seizure of more than 91 metric tons of narcotics. 2026 operations have continued with large takedowns, including 144 arrests and 1,124 kg of drugs in Las Vegas, multi-kilogram fentanyl seizures, recovery of more than 1,500 firearms, lengthy sentences, and extraditions targeting cartels, gangs, and trafficking networks.

The executive-order mandate specifically prioritizes child-trafficking cases, with ongoing multi-agency rescues and predator takedowns beyond the drug and firearms statistics. Federal agencies including the FBI, HSI, and U.S. Marshals continue investigations and operations against child-trafficking and exploitation networks. Many remain non-public until arrests or rescues occur, to protect ongoing work. Recent public examples and official statements confirm that this priority continues through task forces, victim identification, and targeted enforcement.

Educating Educators to Protect Children

Guard Against Trafficking is an organization dedicated to combatting human trafficking through innovative research, dynamic education and strategic solutions. Counter-trafficking consultant Ali Hopper provided testimony for Congressional Oversight on September 1, 2026

The children deserve our time and energy focused to insure their safety. With a multi-agency coordinated law-enforcement action, accountability for those who enabled or profited from their exploitation will occur. Progress is measurable, it is happening, but the work is far from finished. Here are clear examples of ongoing operations:

Here are recent quotes and statements from law enforcement officials on partnering to combat child trafficking, locate missing children, share resources, and the results of multi-agency operations (primarily from 2026 official sources, press releases, and public statements).

FBI Director Kash Patel (on Operation Summer Heat 2.0 results, including children located):

“This year’s Summer Heat was our second straight nationwide offensive to crush violent crime all over the country, and the results were outstanding. Even after last year’s unprecedented numbers, all 56 FBI field offices stepped up and delivered even higher numbers this year—arresting almost 9,000 subjects, up 3% from Summer Heat last year; seizing 63% more fentanyl; identifying or locating 1,410 children, 34% higher than last year; and recovering over 5,000 weapons, up 120% from 2025. … When this FBI elevated ‘crushing violent crime’ to one of our top priorities, we moved 2,000 FBI personnel out of Washington and permanently into the field—making the decisive call to go on offense.”

Patel has also highlighted broader progress: the FBI has identified or located over 11,000 child victims (a 21% increase) and arrested over 5,000 child predators and human traffickers (a 13% increase) in roughly the prior 18 months, supported by more than 90 Child Exploitation and Human Trafficking Task Forces that include local task force officers and international partners.

FBI Director Kash Patel (on the Long Island Missing Children Recovery Operation that located 34 children):

“A three-day operation in New York brought together 100+ professionals from nearly 40 agencies — and 34 missing children and teens, ages 7 to 18, were found. That’s what happens when law enforcement shares intelligence, follows every lead, and refuses to quit. These aren’t case numbers. They’re kids. They’re families. Outstanding work by every professional who helped bring them to safety. Find the missing. Protect the vulnerable. Never stop.”

Homeland Security Investigations (HSI) (on the Memphis Safe Task Force):

“THANKS TO THE MEMPHIS SAFE TASK FORCE, 180+ MISSING CHILDREN HAVE BEEN LOCATED. HSI and our federal and state partners remain committed to protecting children and keeping our communities safe.”

El Paso County Sheriff Joseph Roybal (on the new Southern Colorado Child Exploitation and Human Trafficking Task Force with FBI Denver and Colorado Springs Police):

“Protecting children and vulnerable individuals requires more than the efforts of any single law enforcement agency. It requires trusted partnerships, shared intelligence and a commitment to working together without boundaries. By bringing the FBI, El Paso County Sheriff’s Office, and Colorado Springs Police Department together under one roof, we are strengthening our ability to identify victims, disrupt those who prey on them and hold offenders accountable. This task force represents a united front against child exploitation and human trafficking…”

FBI Denver Special Agent in Charge Amanda Koldjeski (same task force):

“Establishing the Southern Colorado Child Exploitation and Human Trafficking Task Force is a commitment to the families of Southern Colorado: We will not wait for problems to grow. We will be proactive. We will work together. And we will do everything in our power to keep children safe.”

Border Czar Tom Homan (on locating unaccompanied children from the prior administration, in interviews and statements):

“He [President Trump] asked me to do three things: secure the border, run deportation operations, and find these kids.”
Homan has stated that roughly 157,000 of the previously unaccounted-for children have been located through the work of HSI, the FBI, and partners (with many found safe with family, though some in trafficking or exploitation situations). He has emphasized the difficulty due to fraudulent sponsor information and said efforts continue for the remainder, noting he will not stop searching.

FBI New York (on the Long Island operation):

“The three-day operation brought together more than 100 professionals from nearly 40 agencies and organizations to locate vulnerable young people and connect them with care and support. Together, law enforcement partners will continue to work together in the mission to protect and find all children.”

These are drawn from official FBI, HSI, and related public statements and releases in 2026. Primary sources include FBI.gov press materials, HSI/ICE announcements, and public remarks by Patel and Homan. Numbers and claims can vary slightly by date and exact scope as operations are ongoing.

The Law Enforcement Partnership Model:

• How they partner: Multi-agency task forces (HSTFs co-led by FBI and HSI, plus local/state agencies, NCMEC, etc.) co-locate investigators, share intelligence in real time, pool resources, conduct joint operations, and combine federal tools with local knowledge. Officials repeatedly stress that no single agency can do it alone.
• Desire for city/local partnership: Statements emphasize the value of local participation for faster identification of victims, better community knowledge, and force-multiplier effects. New local task forces are being stood up specifically to strengthen this.
• Success metrics cited: Thousands of children identified/located or rescued (e.g., 1,410 in Summer Heat 2.0 alone, up 34%; broader figures of 11,000+; 157,000 of prior UAC cases located per Homan/HHS; 180+ via one Memphis task force; 34 in one New York operation). Arrests of predators and traffickers in the thousands, with increases over prior periods. Operations include Summer Heat, targeted HSTF actions (e.g., Loaded Dice in Las Vegas), and specialized efforts like victim identification sprints.
• Resource sharing: Intelligence sharing, joint task forces, coordinated welfare checks/sponsor investigations, and multi-agency command structures. Many specific rescues stay non-public until complete for operational reasons.

Operations are ongoing, only after they are completed are the results announced, but here are 5 recent examples of multi-agency operations that located or recovered missing/endangered children (primarily 2026, drawn from official announcements by the FBI, HSI, U.S. Marshals Service, and related agencies). Numbers reflect what was publicly reported at the time of each announcement; many operations are ongoing or part of larger efforts, and not every individual case is detailed for operational reasons.

1. Memphis Safe Task Force (Memphis, Tennessee) ~180–196 missing children located (figures cited as 180+ by HSI in late September 2026; U.S. Marshals updates around the same period and later listed ~196 since the task force launched). Multi-agency effort (U.S. Marshals, HSI, FBI, local/state partners, and others) focused on violent crime, warrants, guns, and missing children. Ongoing since September 2025.
2. Long Island Missing Children Recovery Operation (Long Island and Queens, New York) 34 missing children and teens (ages 7–18) located in a 3-day operation (early October 2026). Involved 100+ professionals from nearly 40 agencies and organizations (FBI New York, New York State agencies, local partners, National Child Protection Task Force, and others). Some cases involved exploitation/trafficking indicators.
3. Operation Summer Heat 2.0 (Nationwide, FBI-led) 1,410 children identified or located (34% increase over the prior year’s Summer Heat). Four-month violent crime surge (roughly June–September 2026) across all 56 FBI field offices, working with state and local partners. Also included thousands of arrests, weapons seizures, and fentanyl interdiction.
4. Operation Iron Pursuit (Nationwide, DOJ/FBI) Over 200 child victims located (and 350+ offenders arrested). One-month nationwide crackdown in April 2026 involving all 56 FBI field offices and U.S. Attorneys’ offices, focused on child sexual abuse and exploitation.
5. Operation Meridian (Ohio, U.S. Marshals Service-led) 79 missing and endangered children (ages 6–17) located. Monthlong effort in August 2026, described as the largest missing-child operation in Ohio history. Involved dozens of agencies including local police, sheriffs, FBI, HSI, and others.

These are public, high-profile examples. Additional recoveries occur through ongoing HSTF work, local task forces, and UAC welfare checks, but many details stay non-public until operations conclude. High level officials such as Tom Homan, HHS, FBI or the White House have referenced roughly 157,000 previously unaccounted-for unaccompanied children located since early 2025 through coordinated HSI/FBI/partner efforts, though that is a cumulative multi-year effort rather than a single named operation. Figures are updated as investigations continue.