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FBI Announces Results of National Child Sex Trafficking Operation

Justice2015-10-14

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OREGON - October 13, 2015 - The FBI’s Child Exploitation Task Force and a number of local and state partner agencies in Oregon recovered three child sex trafficking victims and arrested six pimps as part of a national operation last week. The initiative, dubbed Operation Cross Country IX, is a program spearheaded by the FBI and the National Center for Missing & Exploited Children to target the criminal enterprises responsible for the commercial sex trafficking of children.

Portland

1 minor sex trafficking victim recovered

Vancouver

1 minor sex trafficking victim recovered
1 toddler recovered, placed into protective custody

Arrests include:

James E. Donaldson, age 42, charged with promoting prostitution
Jerome D. Akles, age 48, charged with promoting prostitution
Veronica A. Britt, age 25, charged with promoting commercial sex abuse of a minor

Beaverton

1 minor sex trafficking victim recovered

Eugene

Arrests include:

Marlon Slaffey, age 37, charged with promoting prostitution
Mazio Lincoln Frasier, age 45, charged with promoting prostitution

Salem

Arrests include:

David Wendell Fair Jr., age 39, charged with promoting prostitution

“Human trafficking is a monstrous and devastating crime that steals lives and degrades our nation,” said Attorney General Loretta Lynch. “As a result of the FBI’s outstanding coordination and exemplary efforts alongside state and local partners during Operation Cross Country, more children will sleep safely tonight, and more wrongdoers will face the judgment of our criminal justice system. The Department of Justice will continue to aggressively and persistently fight this heinous crime, and to hold its perpetrators accountable to the fullest extent of the law.”

Operation Cross Country IX is the largest ever in the nine-year history of the initiative, with 53 FBI field offices and 73 state and local task forces taking part in the operation in 135 cities across America. In our area, stings took place in Portland, Beaverton, Eugene, Pendleton, and Salem in Oregon and Vancouver in Washington.

Throughout the country, agents and investigators conducted both “in-call” and “out-call” operations in hotels, casinos, truck stops and in other areas known to be frequented by adult prostitutes, child victims and their customers. With regards to the Oregon operations, we will not release specifics as to the stings, including their locations, to protect the integrity of future operations.

“We’re proud to partner with the FBI and provide support to both law enforcement and victim specialists in the field as they work to locate and recover survivors of child sex trafficking,” said Linda Krieg, Acting Chief Executive Officer of NCMEC. “The number of children recovered and pimps arrested in this year’s operation highlights the importance of these efforts today and every day in protecting our children from exploitation.”

Operation Cross Country is part of the FBI’s Innocence Lost national initiative, which began in 2003. Since the program’s inception, more than 4,800 children who were being trafficked have been recovered, and prosecutors have obtained more than 2,000 convictions, including at least 15 that have resulted in life sentences. For additional information on Operation Cross Country IX and the Innocence Lost initiative, please visit www.fbi.gov.

Law enforcement partner agencies include:

FBI’s Portland Division Child Exploitation Task Force
Portland Police Bureau
Beaverton Police Department
Tigard Police Department
Vancouver Police Department
Multnomah County District Attorney’s Office
United States Attorney’s Office
Oregon State Police
Multnomah County Sheriff’s Office
Clark County Sheriff’s Office
Eugene Police Department
Salem Police Department
Fairview Police Department
Gresham Police Department
Hermiston Police Department
Umatilla Tribal Police Department
Blue Mountain Narcotics Enforcement Team (BENT)
Lane County Sheriff’s Office
Lane County Interagency Narcotics Enforcement Team (INET)
Umatilla County District Attorney’s Office
Marion County District Attorney’s Office
Clark County Prosecuting Attorney’s Office
Homeland Security Investigations

Social service agency partners include:

Oregon Department of Human Services—Child Welfare
Multnomah County—Commercial Sexual Exploitation of Children (CSEC) Program
Washington County
Marion County
Lane County
Umatilla County District Attorney’s Office Victim Assistance Program
Umatilla County Juvenile Services Division
Multnomah County District Attorney’s Office Victim Assistance Program
Lane County District Attorney’s Office Victim Services Program
Washington County District Attorney’s Office Victim Assistance Program
Washington County Juvenile Services
Marion County District Attorney’s Office Victim Assistance Program
Beaverton Police Department Victim Assistance Program
Washington Department of Social and Health Services—Clark County
Oregon Department of Justice
Tonya’s House (Pendleton)
Guardian Care Center (Pendleton)
Domestic Violence Services, Inc. (Pendleton)
Sexual Assault Resource Center (SARC) (Portland)
LifeWorks New Options for Women (NOW) (Portland)
LifeWork Northwest (minor victims) (Portland)
Sexual Assault Support Services (SASS) (Eugene)
Kids’ FIRST (Eugene)
Looking Glass—Station 7 (Eugene)
Center for Hope and Safety (Salem)
YWCA (Vancouver)
FBI Portland
Beth Anne Steele
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