"With the advent of summer vacation, children may have more time and access to the Internet, making this a good time to talk to them about online dangers. Many of the child exploitation cases under Operation Orion began with a child or teen chatting with someone he or she met online," said ICE Director John Morton. "Let this operation be a warning to anyone who would think they can use the Internet to exploit children: we are out there looking for you, we will find you, and you will be prosecuted," ICE Director John Morton said in a statement. The operation took place from May 1 to May 31. Eighteen victims of child pornography were rescued during a nationwide sweep by federal law enforcement agencies, U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement announced Friday. The sweep, dubbed Operation Orion, resulted in the arrests of 190 individuals, most of which were in the U.S. but included arrests in Argentina, the Philippines, Spain and the United Kingdom, ICE said in a press release.
– Federal officials say they identified and rescued 18 minors who were the victims of child pornography, reports CNN. The month-long investigation resulted in nearly 200 arrests, mostly in the US but also in the UK, Argentina, the Philippines, and Spain. Many of the victims were apparently duped into striking up a relationship online, in some cases then meeting in person. "Let this operation be a warning to anyone who would think they can use the Internet to exploit children: We are out there looking for you, we will find you, and you will be prosecuted," says John Morton, director of ICE, which worked with Homeland Security on the investigation. One of those arrested is a 35-year-old Louisiana man accused of making porn based on an assault of a 7-year-old, and the local Shreveport Times runs down that one and some of the other arrests.