56 arrested in Orange County human trafficking operation
SANTA ANA, Calif. - More than 50 people have been arrested and 16 victims have been recovered as part of a recent human trafficking operation in Orange County.
"Operation Red Zone" was conducted from Feb. 9 through Feb. 12, in partnership with the Orange County Intelligence Assessment Center, local law enforcement and federal agencies. In total 56 people have been arrested. Two of the victims recovered through the operation were under the age of 16.
"Human traffickers know that if they come to Orange County, we are going to find them, we are going to arrest them, and we are going to prosecute them," Orange County District Attorney Todd Spitzer said in a press release. "Proactive investigations like this allow law enforcement agencies to contact vulnerable victims of sex trafficking who might have otherwise never been able to escape their traffickers and receive valuable victim services that can help them heal, and every arrest we make and every case we file serves as a message to human traffickers everywhere: don’t come to Orange County."
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Among the dozens arrested are men aged 25 to 55 from Orange and Los Angeles counties. Charges include human trafficking, pimping and pandering, solicitation for sex, and narcotics, according to law enforcement. One unregistered handgun was recovered.
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