Eight missing and endangered children have been rescued or recovered during a two-month investigation by the U.S. Marshals Service in the New Orleans area.
The operations called 'Return of the School Year' and 'NO Saints and Sinners 2021' were undertaken by the U.S. Marshals Service Eastern District of Louisiana New Orleans Task Force Missing Child Unit (MCU) and Sex Offender Investigations Branch (SOIB).
The operations ran in the New Orleans metro area from August 1st until September 30, 2021, resulting in the rescue or recovery of 8 missing/endangered children.
The US Marshals Service says that an additional three children self-returned during the operation and three more were located.
MCU Investigations led to recoveries in Phoenix, Arizona where deputies say a female teen was en route to Las Vegas to meet up with an adult male she met on the internet. Two recoveries were also made in a rural area of southern Mississippi.
Investigations as part of the two-month MCU operation also uncovered allegations of human sex trafficking of minors during several of the cases, according to the Marshals Office.
Operations by the USMS SOIB resulted in the arrests of 18 sex offenders for sex offender registration violations. 46 sex offender compliance checks were done during the operation with 33 verified compliant, 3 verified as being noncompliant, and 10 needing further investigation.
Additionally, the SOIB operation resulted in the arrest of six additional fugitives including a man wanted by New Orleans Police on a September 2021 warrant for Sexual Battery on a 7 year old victim, another man on a New Orleans Police Department warrant for 2 counts of Production of Child Porn on a 14 year old female victim, and a third man on a July 2021 Orleans Parish Criminal District Court Capias based on a Grand Jury Indictment for Aggravated Rape and Aggravated Kidnapping that occurred in 1989.
In 2021, the USMS New Orleans Task Force says it has recovered 43 missing/endangered children or family abductions. An additional 16 children self-returned during the investigation and 5 children were recovered via other efforts.
“This was another example of the results that can be accomplished with continuing law enforcement teamwork, and I am very proud of the long-term partnerships created by our USMS New Orleans Task Force with other local, state and federal agencies in combating violent crime and recovering missing/endangered children, said U.S. Marshal for the Eastern District of Louisiana Scott Illing. “Much of this work was also accomplished while dealing with the aftermath of Hurricane Ida in the New Orleans metro area.”
The US Marshals Office says that any information about missing/endangered children should be reported to local police or the National Center for Missing and Exploited Children at 1-800-The-Lost.
Information about violent fugitives can be provided to the U.S. Marshals Service at (504) 589-6872, via email at usms.wanted@usdoj.gov, or with the USMS tips app. Crimestoppers GNO may also be contacted with tips at (504) 822-1111.
Additional information about the U.S. Marshals Service can be found at http://www.usmarshals.gov.
------------------------------------------------------------
Stay in touch with us anytime, anywhere.
To reach the newsroom or report a typo/correction, click HERE.
Sign up for newsletters emailed to your inbox. Select from these options: Breaking News, Evening News Headlines, Latest COVID-19 Headlines, Morning News Headlines, Special Offers
