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FBI
The
selling of innocence: Testimony
Michael
T. Harpster, Acting Deputy Assistant Director, Criminal Investigative
Division
Federal
Bureau of Investigation - Statement Before the House Judiciary
Committee, Subcommittee on Crime, Terrorism, Homeland Security, and
Investigations, Washington, D.C.
March
26, 2014 - Good morning Chairman Sensenbrenner, Ranking Member Scott,
Vice Chairman Gohmert, and distinguished members of the subcommittee.
I am pleased to be here with you today to discuss the Federal Bureau
of Investigation’s (FBI) efforts to combat child sex trafficking.
It’s
nearly unthinkable, but every year, thousands of children become
victims of crime—whether it’s through kidnappings, violent
attacks, sexual abuse, or online predators.
While
victims come from all socioeconomic backgrounds, they are often
targeted because of individual vulnerabilities. Many have already
experienced abusive or troubled families; have disabilities; come
from families with very limited resources; have run away; are
involved in the juvenile justice, dependency, or foster care systems;
or are estranged from protective networks because of their LGBT
identity. In the hands of their abusers, these individuals will be
subjected to numerous sexual assaults and continued abuse, including
sex trafficking.
Over
the last several years, the FBI, state and local law enforcement, and
the public have developed a deeper understanding of the ways in which
children are being victimized. More incidents of child exploitation
involving a connection to online activity are being identified for
investigation than ever before. Between fiscal years 1996 and 2007,
the number of cases opened throughout the FBI dramatically increased
from just over 100 to more than 2,000. From 2007 to the present, the
numbers have steadily continued to rise. In December 2013, the FBI
had more than 7,000 pending investigations involving child
exploitation, including sex trafficking of minors and child
pornography.
To
combat this threat, the FBI utilizes an intelligence-based threat
driven approach and the expertise of those in its Violent Crimes
Against Children (VCAC) program. The mission of the VCAC program is
to provide a rapid, proactive, and comprehensive response to counter
all threats of abuse and exploitation of children when those crimes
fall under the jurisdiction and authority of the FBI; to identify and
rescue child victims; to reduce the vulnerability of children to
in-person and online sexual exploitation and abuse; and to strengthen
the capabilities of the FBI and federal, state, local, tribal, and
international law enforcement partners through training, intelligence
sharing, technical support, and investigative assistance.
Our
strategy involves using multi-disciplinary and multi-agency teams to
investigate and prosecute crimes that cross geographical and
jurisdictional boundaries; promoting and enhancing interagency
sharing of intelligence, specialized skills, and services; and widely
offering our victim/witness services. All for the express purpose of
protecting our nation’s greatest asset—our children.
Historical
Overview of the FBI’s Response to Child Sexual Exploitation
While
investigating the disappearance of a juvenile in May 1993, FBI
special agents from the Baltimore Field Office and detectives from
the Prince George’s County (Maryland) Police Department identified
two suspects who had sexually exploited numerous juveniles over a
25-year period. An investigation into these activities revealed that
adults were routinely using computers to transmit sexually explicit
images of minors and, in some instances, to lure minors into engaging
in illicit sexual activity. Further investigation and discussions
with experts, both within the FBI and in the private sector, revealed
that the use of computer telecommunications was rapidly becoming one
of the most prevalent techniques by which some sex offenders shared
pornographic images of minors and identified and recruited children
into sexual relationships. In 1995, based on information developed
during this investigation, the Innocent Images National
Initiative—initially part of our Cyber Division—was created to
address this type of criminal activity conducted by users of
commercial and private online services and the Internet.
In
2000, the Crimes Against Children program was formed by our Violent
Crimes Section—part of the FBI’s Criminal Investigative Division.
It was under this umbrella that programs such as the Innocence Lost
National Initiative and Child Abduction Rapid Deployment Teams were
implemented to provide additional resources and response tools to
combat the ever-present problems of child sex trafficking, child
abduction, and child sex tourism...
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