Sheriff Grady Judd will brief the media this morning, Thursday, September 30, 2021 at 10:00 a.m., at the Sheriff’s Operations Center (1891 Jim Keene Blvd., Winter Haven) about “Operation Guardians of Innocence VII,” an investigation by the PCSO Computer Crimes Unit which focused on identifying those who possess and distribute child pornography.
The investigation resulted in the location of at least three victims, as well as the arrests of 16 men who are facing more than 2,770 felony charges. The child pornography included thousands of photos and videos depicting babies, toddlers, and children being sexually battered and forced to engage in sex acts.
“One of the vilest crimes is the sexual abuse of children. Those arrested in this operation not only create a market for the sexual abuse and rape of babies and children worldwide, every time these images and videos are uploaded and shared, these innocent children are victimized over and over again. As you know, this is only the beginning – once we serve search warrants and seize these suspects devices, a forensic analysis will be conducted, and we will, in all likelihood, be adding more child pornography charges. This is also an example of why it is so important for parents and guardians to ensure parental controls are enabled on all of your child’s devices.” – Grady Judd, Sheriff
