Three people arrested in connection with a national investigation into alleged commercial child sex trafficking made first appearances in Clark County Superior Court on Monday.
James E. Donaldson, 42, a transient; and Veronica A. Britt, 25, and Jerome D. Akles, 48, both of Portland, were among six people, spanning three Oregon cities and Vancouver, who were arrested following a sting by the FBI’s Child Exploitation Task Force.
Several local and state agencies assisted in the arrests and in rescuing three alleged child sex trafficking victims, according to an FBI news release.
Donaldson and Akles appeared Monday; each faces an allegation of second-degree promoting prostitution. Britt appeared on suspicion of promoting commercial sex abuse of a minor.
In the Clark County cases, the suspects were identified as the drivers for females who were allegedly meeting up with people to perform sexual acts, court records show. According to the FBI, a juvenile sex-trafficking victim was rescued and a toddler was placed into protective custody.
FBI agents and investigators throughout the country conducted stings in hotels, casinos, truck stops and other areas known to be frequented by adult prostitutes, child victims and customers, the news release said. Fifty-three FBI field offices and 73 state and local task forces took part in the operation in 135 cities across the United States.
The initiative, known as Operation Cross Country IX, began in 2003 and is spearheaded by the FBI and the National Center for Missing and Exploited Children.
Since its inception, the program has helped more than 4,800 child victims and has led to more than 2,000 convictions, including at least 15 that resulted in life sentences, according to the FBI.
