The U.S. Marshals Service (USMS), in collaboration with federal, state, and local agencies across seven federal districts, led a six-week national operation that located 200 critically missing children, including endangered runaways and those abducted by noncustodial persons.
Operation We Will Find You 2 (OWWFY2), held from May 20 to June 24, focused on areas with high numbers of missing children. These children are often in serious danger and vulnerable to crimes like trafficking and abuse.
With help from the National Center for Missing and Exploited Children (NCMEC), OWWFY2 rescued 123 children from dangerous situations and found 77 more in safe locations.
Of the 200 children, 173 were endangered runaways, 25 were otherwise missing, one was a family abduction, and one was a non-family abduction.
The youngest child recovered was five months old. Fourteen children were found outside their cities of disappearance, and 57% were recovered within seven days of USMS involvement.
“One of the most sacred missions of the U.S. Marshals Service is locating and recovering our nation’s critically missing children,” said USMS Director Ronald L. Davis. “This is one of our top priorities as there remain thousands of children still missing and at risk.”
“Operation We Will Find You is a shining example of the results we can achieve when we unite in our mission to find missing children,” said NCMEC President and CEO Michelle DeLaune. “We are grateful that vulnerable children have been recovered as part of this operation, and we commend the U.S. Marshals Service and all the agencies involved for their commitment to protect youth and ensure these children are not forgotten. Behind every statistic, there is a child who deserves to grow up safe from harm.”
The operation took place in:
- District of Arizona (Phoenix, Tucson, and surrounding counties)
- Eastern District of California (San Joaquin and Sacramento counties)
- Southern District of Florida (Miami-Dade and surrounding counties)
- Western District of Michigan (Kent and surrounding counties)
- Eastern District of North Carolina (multiple counties)
- Southern and Eastern Districts of New York (New York City)
- District of Oregon (Portland, Eugene, and surrounding counties)
The goal of OWWFY2 was to highlight partnerships among government and non-government agencies, creating a multi-disciplinary team to find missing children and bring attention to the issue.
The USMS worked with various partners, including NCMEC and local law enforcement, to safely recover missing children at risk of endangerment. These were some of the most challenging recovery cases, involving high-risk factors like trafficking, abuse, and medical conditions.
The Justice for Victims of Trafficking Act of 2015 enhanced the USMS’s authority to assist in recovering endangered missing children.
The USMS established a Missing Child Unit to oversee this enhanced authority. Members of the USMS trained personnel in participating locations months before the operation to ensure proper case selection and preparation.
Significant recoveries include:
- A 16-year-old girl in Michigan was found with an adult male in Indiana after being controlled and abused.
- A 15-year-old girl in Florida recovered from human trafficking in Miami-Dade.
- A 16-year-old girl in Arizona with a history of trafficking found in Michigan.
- A 16-year-old girl in New York was found with evidence of sexual exploitation.
- A one-year-old in North Carolina safely recovered from a mother with a violent history.
- A 17-year-old girl in California was found at a motel with her sister and an adult male.
For more information, visit U.S. Marshals Service.