Authorities have arrested 37 in an anti-human trafficking operation conducted by federal, state, and local law enforcement in Midland, Texas. The majority were charged for trying to engage in sexual acts with a child under 14 or a prostitute under 18.
“Operation Damascus” lasted from July 11 to July 25 and was jointly conducted by the Texas Department of Public Safety, FBI, Homeland Security Department, Midland Police, and the Midland County District Attorney’s Office.
The arrestees ranged from 19 to 63 years old. No problems were reported during the arrests, Midland Police spokeswoman Rachel Walker told The Epoch Times.
The number of arrests came as a surprise to small town Midland, said Laura Nodolf, Midland County District Attorney.
“Any time that you have a situation where you think about children being hurt, people don’t want to think about that,” she said. “For this to come to light that in our community … we are able to arrest, have 37 offenses in that time period has been very much a shock to our community.”
