Polk County Operation 'Fool Around and Find Out' Leads to Human Trafficking Arrests and Victim Rescues

Operation 'Fool Around and Find Out'

• 🎯 Polk County Sheriff's Office conducted a week-long, multi-agency undercover sting operation named 'Fool Around and Find Out'.
• 🚨 The operation resulted in 247 arrests targeting human trafficking and illegal immigration.
• ⚖️ Sheriff Grady Judge emphasized a commitment to prosecuting offenders and protecting children.

Victim Support and Alarming Trends

• 🤝 At least 10 victims of human trafficking were identified and brought into supportive hands during the operation.
• 📈 Victim advocates from 'One More Child' reported seeing alarming trends, particularly an increase in the trafficking of children.
• 💔 Advocates noted a historic number of individuals, 36 people, immediately signed up for services to escape sexual exploitation.

Nonprofit's Role and Services

• 💖 'One More Child', a Lakeland nonprofit, provides services for adults and children affected by trafficking.
• 💬 Survivors felt secure enough to reveal information and help apprehend their traffickers, thanks to the comfort provided by staff and detectives.
• 🏠 The nonprofit connects victims with housing and job opportunities, aiming to break the cycle of exploitation.

Evolving Trafficking Tactics

• ⚠️ Alarming trends include women being trafficked by husbands and boyfriends.
• ✈️ There is an observed increase in travelers willing to travel for sex with minors, with 15 such individuals arrested in this operation.
• 👶 Victims ranged in age from 17 to over 50, with advocates stressing that adult victims were also child victims at one point.