FRANKLIN COUNTY, Fla. – Six people were arrested in an operation targeting online child predators in Franklin County, Attorney General James Uthmeier announced on Thursday.
Uthmeier, Franklin County Sheriff A.J. Smith, FDLE Commissioner Mark Glass and ICE HSI Tallahassee Assistant Special Agent in Charge Nicholas Ingegno held a news conference in Apalachicola Thursday morning to announce the results of what they called “Operation Summer Hurricane”, and added that there are two more people they’re actively looking for, including an out-of-state suspect.
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“They’re trying to pick up underage kids on the internet, chatting with them, which I know you’ve seen a lot of these operations across the state. This is the first time one has ever been done in Franklin County,” Smith said.
Uthmeier said one of the suspects was in the country illegally.
“There are people here who have illicit motives, that want to hurt our children. So we are going to continue to enforce the rule of law. We’re going to continue to detain these individuals, get them back where they came from,” Uthmeier said.
Officials also urged parents to get involved in their children’s online activity by tracking and monitoring the applications they use and their interactions, adding that Snapchat is a “preferred app” for sex predators.
“Parents, grandparents, you are the first line of defense. Get up to speed on what your kids are doing. Get access to the tools you can to protect a dangerous situation from happening,” Uthmeier said.