Editor’s Note: This story contains discussions of child abuse that may be disturbing. Reader discretion is advised. If you suspect a child is being abused, find out how to report it in your state here. To connect with a counselor, you can call the National Child Abuse Hotline at 1-800-422-4253.
A sweeping operation by the Riverside County Sheriff’s Office’s Anti-Human Trafficking Task Force, with assistance from multiple other law enforcement agencies led to the rescue of dozens of missing children between the ages of 14 and 17 in Southern California and neighboring states, officials announced.
The sheriff’s office said that in Riverside County alone, some 5,000 – 6,000 children runaway or go missing each year, with the vast majority of them returning home not long after leaving…