As Waters Passing By (waterspassingby) wrote, @ 2006-04-23 04:26:00

Missouri: St. Louis Makes FBI List For Sexual Exploitation Of Children
http://www.ksdk.com/news/news_article.aspx?storyid=95256

St. Louis Makes FBI List For Sexual Exploitation Of Children

Last updated: 4/14/2006 10:42:33 PM
St. Louis finds itself on an FBI list of cities where children are likely to be sexually exploited. 13 other American cities are also on that list.

FBI officials say predators are increasingly making their presence known in cities like St. Louis. They are luring naive kids into a life of sex crimes.

With darkness comes the grim reality about the streets of St. Louis. They are shelter for homeless include men and women forced to survive, the best they know how.

A fast growing homeless population involves runaway children. One of the difficulties in helping children is that they are rarely visible on the streets. Experts say the end result for many children is a life of crime, drugs and sexual exploitation.

The FBI says an alarmingly number of kids are being lured into prostitution. Even more frightening is where it's happening. Among the 14 major cities identified by the FBI as sexual exploitation centers-- St. Louis, Chicago and the nation's capital.

Michael Meehan is the associate executive director of Epworth. It is a St. Louis area facility where children and teens find hope out of bad situations. The problem is, many kids never make it to get help.

Meehan says, "It is not something we as professionals like to think about, but it happens. And that is why we continue to be so vigilant and passionate about what we do because we know the consequence."

The FBI says the average age of sex crime victims are 9 and 11 years old. Many come from middle class homes. Estimates suggest more than 100 thousand children are victims of sex trafficking.

For now, police focus on finding the predators, while places like Epworth try desperately to find help for potential victims. The FBI says there are many similarities among the 14 sex centers. Among them, adult prostitutes actively recruiting kids.

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