SCOTTSDALE — Over just three days in June, Scottsdale Police Department's Human Exploitation and Trafficking unit arrested 11 people in an operation targeting adults preying on children online.
The four-detective unit has already made 190 arrests this year.
“It’s absolutely horrifying,” a neighbor said. “You don’t think that happens in a community like Scottsdale.”
It’s not just in Scottsdale. Chandler Police Department ran a similar sting operation in May, catching 13 would-be predators in just two days.
The Chandler Police Department conducted a multi-agency operation targeting online predators, making 13 arrests for 30 sex-related felony crimes. #ChandlerPD #ChandlerAZ #Community #ChandlerSafe pic.twitter.com/Fh9WGfotj5
— Chandler Police (@ChandlerPolice) June 20, 2023
Stacey Sutherland with the Arizona Anti-Trafficking Network says she appreciates the proactive police work.
“If they were not doing this, these offenders would be preying and harming children,” Sutherland said.
No real children are harmed or put at risk in the operations. Undercover detectives communicate with the suspects online until an arrest is made when the suspects think they are going to have a real-life meeting with a kid.
“We deal with a lot of people from the very beginning and it's getting them down to finally get to make that arrest,” Scottsdale Police Sgt. Andrew Parrott said. “While we may arrest 10, we may have talked to hundreds and hundreds that just didn’t get to that point.”
Sutherland says parents need to be cognizant of who kids are talking with.
“We do have predators in our own community and they assimilate and they look like you and me,” Sutherland told ABC15. “They don’t look like that creepy guy everyone thinks they look like or that creepy gal for that matter.”
Sgt. Parrott agrees.
“Unfortunately in this crime, we’ve arrested every part of the world that walks this Earth,” Parrott said.
Sutherland says it’s vital for parents to have honest discussions and clear boundaries with their kids. She says simple rules can go a long way to protecting kids.
“Steps like don't allow that phone to go in their bedroom at night because you’re allowing access to anyone and everyone in the world when they do that.”
Arizona Anti-Trafficking Network provides more information and helpful tips on how to protect your family.
