Hello Everyone,
Evelyn here,
In this edition of the Attorney General's newsletter News Briefs the General announces the opening of the newly opens Cypercrime Unit in Orlando Florida with opening schedule for Ft. Lauderdale, Ft. Myers, Pensacola, Tallahassee and Tampa.
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October 19, 2007
Message from Attorney General Bill McCollum
This past Monday, my office officially began the statewide expansion of
the Child Predator CyberCrime Unit with the opening of the unit’s first
new location in Orlando. The Orlando location will be among six new
offices opening throughout Florida within the next year, enabling our
investigators and attorneys to extend our efforts to crack downon
child pornographers and individuals who solicit children over the
internet.
I was joined at the Orlando grand opening by members of the CyberCrime
Unit as well as Congressman Ric Keller, Orange County Mayor Richard
Crotty, State Attorney Lawson Lamar, Osceola County Sheriff Bob Hansel,
Deputy Orlando Police Chief Pete Gauntlett and many other members of
the local and state law enforcement and child advocate community. Having such a distinguished and dedicated group present highlights not only the importance of this effort, but of the need for a cooperative approach in the fight against predators lurking in cyberspace.
As part of the opening, I invited our guests and members of the media
to watch our CyberCrime law enforcement team conduct online chats while
posing as teenage girls. Within a matter of moments, the two officers
were approached by multiple men who rapidly engaged the "girls" in
sexually suggestive conversations. This took place on a Monday morning
at 10:30 a.m. Imagine what children are often exposed to late on a
weekend night... the thought is almost too horrible to contemplate.
The persistent nature of internet child predators is the very reason
the six new office locations and 50 new staff members were so desperately needed by our CyberCrime Unit. Florida ranks fourth in the nation for the volume of child pornography and national statistics tell us that one out of every seven children between the ages of 10 and 17 will be sexually solicited over the internet. With some of the strongest laws against cybercrime in the country, Florida now has a team dedicated to finding the individuals who are flouting those laws and enforcing the criminal sanctions for their dangerous, destructive and sometimes deadly behavior.
As we look toward the future and our new offices yet to be opened in
Ft. Lauderdale, Ft. Myers, Pensacola, Tallahassee and Tampa, I am
encouraged by the strong support we have already received from members
of the law enforcement community as well as the people who work to
protect our children on a daily basis. Together, we will continue to
position Florida as a leader in the nation and the last place internet
predators will want to troll for their victims.
Thank you.
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Evelyn out
