News Release - CyberCrime Unit Opens Office in Northwest Florida

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Attorney General Bill McCollum News Release

July 24, 2008

en Español

Print Version

Media Contact: Sandi Copes
Phone: (850) 245-0150

CyberCrime Unit Opens Office in Northwest Florida

~ Fifth office location completes statewide expansion of McCollum’s CyberCrime Unit ~

TALLAHASSEE – Completing the statewide expansion of his CyberCrime Unit, Attorney General Bill McCollum today opened the fifth CyberCrime office in Milton, which will serve the Northwest Florida region. The new office follows the openings of the unit’s headquarters in Jacksonville and three branch offices in Ft. Lauderdale, Orlando and Tampa. The Attorney General was joined at the opening by members of the local, state and federal law enforcement community as well as local and state government officials and community leaders.

“This Northwest Florida office will offer essential and specialized resources to the law enforcement and victim advocacy community in this part of our state, making Florida the most aggressive states in the nation for fighting the escalation of predatory crimes against children,” said Attorney General McCollum. “With this fifth office, our CyberCrime Unit will be able to offer Florida the statewide coverage and protection our children need.”

The Northwest Florida CPCU will be located within the Santa Rosa Kids House, a nonprofit child advocacy center housing multiple agencies and organizations dedicated to assisting victims of child abuse and their families through the legal and healing process. This particular office is unique in that it combines the resources of the Attorney General's experts in the investigation and prosecution of online child predators and pornographers with the resources of the Florida Department of Children and Families, the Guardian Ad Litem program, the Santa Rosa County School Board, NAS Whiting Field and the Favor House. Having an investigative team based in the Pensacola area will enable the Attorney General's Office to partner with local and federal law enforcement on a regular basis to help protect Panhandle citizens from cyberpredators.

“It's vital we work together to protect children from these horrible crimes and beyond that we've got to educate the public about what to look for and how to get help quickly," said Department of Children and Families Secretary and former Florida Attorney General Bob Butterworth. "The Attorney General's Cyber Crime Unit will be a great addition to the united front already set up to serve children in Florida's panhandle.”

“We are very fortunate to have a CyberCrime Unit located in Santa Rosa County,” said Santa Rosa County Sheriff Wendell Hall. “We are very proud to be part of such an endeavor to help safeguard our citizens from cyber crime.”

Last year, the Florida Legislature recognized the need for the CyberCrime Unit’s efforts to cover the entire state and provided the resources to expand statewide. The expansion provides essential resources to local, state and federal authorities to investigate, arrest and prosecute internet predators and child pornographers. Since Jan 2007, the Attorney General has expanded the CyberCrime Unit statewide from a staff of six to the current 30 positions.

Based on the number of complaints that pour into the National Center for Missing and Exploited Children (NCMEC)’s CyberTipline, internet crimes against children continue to increase and many more are believed to be unreported. The CyberCrime Unit has made a total of 70 arrests, at least five of whom have been Northwest Florida residents. The most recent suspect is a Santa Rosa County man who was arrested several weeks ago after he sent images of child pornography to an undercover sheriff’s deputy in Lake County. Of the 70 cases, at least 18 child victims have been identified.