Overview
- The Fairfax County undercover operation, which led to nine arrests Wednesday, used detectives posing as juveniles online to identify men who traveled to meet what they believed were minors.
- The suspects are aged 21 to 48 and face about 20 charges in total, including solicitation of a minor, procuring a minor for prostitution, and attempted indecent liberties.
- Seven suspects were released on bond while some remain held without bond. DHS says three of those released are in the country illegally and that ICE lodged detainers for them in July.
- DHS publicly criticized the local handling of detainers and urged Virginia officials, including Gov. Abigail Spanberger, to turn the undocumented suspects over to federal immigration authorities.
- Fairfax police warned parents to monitor children’s app use and security settings to reduce online risk, and DHS’s release of prior border apprehension and arrest records for the three men could increase pressure for greater state-local cooperation with ICE.