According to several confirmed reports, a covert sting operation to arrest human traffickers dubbed Operation Autumn Hope yielded 177 arrests and rescued 109 trafficking victims, 45 of whom were children.

U.S. Marshals closed over 80 missing and exploited children cases because of Operation Autumn Hope, a covert law enforcement strategy that brought together more than 50 law enforcement and social service agencies.

The number of arrests and the number of victims rescued makes this operation the largest human trafficking bust in the entire history of the state of Ohio.

“The success of Operation Autumn Hope is measured not only in the number of arrests but in the lives that were rescued from this evil,” said Ohio Attorney General Dave Yost. “Every agency on this team looks for the day when no person is bought and sold in Ohio. Don’t buy sex in Ohio!”