The Department of Justice (DOJ) announced in a news release that the results of Operation Restore Justice, a coordinated enforcement effort to identify, track and arrest child sex predators are in. The operation led to the rescue of 115 children and the arrests of 205 child sexual abuse offenders nationwide. The was executed over five days by all 55 FBI field offices, the Child Exploitation and Obscenity Section in the Department’s Criminal Division and United States Attorney’s Offices around the country.
As part of the effort, a federal grand jury in Davenport returned a two-count indictment yesterday, charging Anthony Charles VanMeter, 55 of Davenport, with receipt and possession of child pornography. VanMeter is currently serving an eight-year term of supervised release for a 2016 possession of child pornography conviction, the release said.
“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,” said Attorney General Pamela Bondi. “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,” said FBI Director Kash Patel. “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 FBI Omaha Field Office, with the assistance of local, state and federal law enforcement partners, arrested three people, served four federal search warrants, and identified 15 victims from about 1,000 images submitted to the National Center for Missing and Exploited Children.
“The harm child sexual predators inflict is vast, said FBI Omaha Special Agent in Charge Eugene Kowel. “Locking them up is one of the most important actions the FBI and our law enforcement partners can take to protect children. We are proud of the work of our Violent Crimes Against Children Task Force in Operation Restore Justice and will remain relentless in our pursuit of these criminals to ensure the safety of the most vulnerable members of our community.”
The release noted that others arrested around the country are alleged to have committed various crimes including the production, distribution and possession of child sexual abuse material, online enticement and transportation of minors and child sex trafficking. Vigilance by parents and community outreach played a vital role in bringing these offenders to justice. In one example, a California man was arrested about eight hours after a young victim came forward and disclosed their abuse to FBI agents after an online safety presentation at a school near Albany, New York.
These cases were brought as part of Project Safe Childhood, a nationwide initiative to combat the epidemic of child sexual exploitation and abuse launched in May 2006 by the Department of Justice and led by U.S. Attorneys’ Offices and CEOS. The program uses federal, state and local resources to locate, apprehend and prosecute individuals who exploit children via the internet and identify and rescue victims.
Click here for more on Project Safe Childhood. The DOJ works with and oversees funding grants for the National Center for Missing and Exploited Children (NCMEC), which receives and shares tips about possible child sexual exploitation received through its 24/7 hotline at 1-800-THE-LOST and on missingkids.org.
The Department asks the public to stay vigilant and report suspected exploitation of a child through the FBI’s tipline at 1-800-CALL-FBI (225-5324), tips.fbi.gov, or by calling a local FBI field office.