4 Louisiana Arrests in Nationwide Child Exploitation Sting Led by FBI
ALEXANDRIA, La. (KPEL News) — Four Louisiana residents have been arrested as part of a sweeping national FBI operation targeting child predators.
Dubbed Operation Restore Justice, the initiative coincided with Child Abuse Prevention Month and led to the arrests of 205 suspects nationwide and the rescue of 115 children.
What is Operation Restore Justice?
Operation Restore Justice is a nationwide effort led by the FBI to track, identify, and arrest individuals involved in child sexual exploitation. Attorney General Pam Bondi and FBI Director Kash Patel announced the results of the operation on Wednesday.
“The Department of Justice will never stop fighting to protect victims — especially child victims — and we will not rest until we hunt down, arrest, and prosecute every child predator who preys on the most vulnerable among us,” Bondi said. “I am grateful to the FBI and their state and local partners for their incredible work in Operation Restore Justice and have directed my prosecutors not to negotiate.”
“Every child deserves to grow up free from fear and exploitation, and the FBI will continue to be relentless in our pursuit of those who exploit the most vulnerable among us,” Patel added in his own statement. “Operation Restore Justice proves that no predator is out of reach and no child will be forgotten. By leveraging the strength of all our field offices and our federal, state and local partners, we’re sending a clear message: there is no place to hide for those who prey on children.”
The operation was run from April 29 to May 2, and the FBI mobilized resources across the country. The results? More than 200 arrests and numerous children being rescued from dangerous situations.
READ MORE: Louisiana Man Sentenced to 27+ Years for Child Exploitation
4 Louisiana Arrests Tied to Child Exploitation Charges
Among those arrested are four suspects in Louisiana, including three individuals apprehended in Alexandria and one in New Orleans, the FBI said in a press release.
Alexandria Arrests: A joint operation involving the FBI, Alexandria Police, and Louisiana State Police led to three arrests. Two suspects are facing state charges and are set to be prosecuted by the Rapides Parish District Attorney’s Office. The remaining suspect in Alexandria will be prosecuted federally by the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Western District of Louisiana.
New Orleans Arrest: The fourth suspect, charged in the Eastern District of Louisiana, faces five separate counts, including sexual exploitation of children, distributing child sexual abuse material (CSAM), and extortion.
FBI Programs Targeting Child Exploitation
The arrests are part of a broader FBI strategy to combat child exploitation, which includes:
Crimes Against Children (CAC) Program: A nationwide initiative to track, identify, and arrest child predators.
Violent Crimes Against Children International Task Force: Nearly 100 international officers working across 60 countries to target child predators globally.
Endangered Child Alert Program (ECAP): Launched in 2004, ECAP has identified 36 individuals involved in child sexual abuse and exploitation.
Community Resources and Reporting Child Exploitation
Residents are urged to report any suspected child exploitation through the following resources:
National Center for Missing and Exploited Children (NCMEC): 1-800-THE-LOST or missingkids.org.
FBI Tip Line: Visit the FBI website to submit information anonymously.
Operation Restore Justice may have ended, but the work to protect children continues across Louisiana and the nation. For more information or to learn how to support anti-child exploitation efforts, visit the FBI’s website or the NCMEC.
FBI Says YOU Need to Watch Out for These Scams
Gallery Credit: Billy Jenkins
