“Operation Lightning Bug” Leads to Rescue of More Than 30 Children from Trafficking in Texas
Child trafficking has been at crisis levels in our nation for years. With four years of an open border under the Biden regime, it’s not surprising just how many children have been exploited.
Thanks to the cooperation of federal and local law enforcement, over 30 missing kids have been rescued from trafficking operations in Texas.
The mission named “Operation Lightning Bug” is a joint operation that was put together by the US Marshals based in Texas, along with the San Antonio Police Department, and their effort to find and identify at-risk children and help facilitate rescue and recovery efforts.
Federal and local authorities rescued more than 30 missing children and uncovered multiple trafficking operations targeting vulnerable youth during a coordinated crackdown across Texas.
The effort, centered in San Antonio, led to arrests, felony warrants and several new investigations under a joint mission known as “Operation Lightning Bug.”
Teams from the U.S. Marshals Service (USMS) out of San Antonio, Del Rio, Midland, and Pecos joined forces with San Antonio Police Department’s Missing Persons Unit, Special Victims Unit, Street Crimes Unit and covert operatives. Together, they combed through Texas and national crime databases to identify at-risk juveniles and coordinate recovery efforts.
The efforts and cooperation from both federal and local law enforcement showed significant results. Three people were arrested for harboring runaways, five new investigations for child trafficking were started, nine felony warrants were carried out, 30 missing kids were located, six children who were sex trafficked were saved and were referred to support services, and over 120 children returned home voluntarily.