HAMILTON COUNTY, TN – UPDATED: A large-scale undercover human trafficking operation in the Chattanooga area has led to multiple arrests. The coordinated effort involved special agents with the Tennessee Bureau of Investigation’s Human Trafficking Unit, the Tennessee Human Trafficking Task Force, the FBI, Collegedale Police, Cleveland Police, the Bradley County Sheriff’s Office, the Hamilton County Sheriff’s Office, and both the 10th and 11th Judicial District Attorneys’ Offices.

On August 19, investigators launched an operation in Cleveland targeting individuals attempting to engage in sex acts with minors and seeking to identify potential victims of human trafficking. The effort resulted in the arrest of three suspects: James Bedford of Clearwater, Florida; Pedro Garcia of Cleveland; and Muhammad Ozair Khan of Chattanooga.

Two days later, on August 21, law enforcement carried out a second operation in Collegedale. Authorities again focused on identifying individuals soliciting minors. That operation led to the arrests of eleven more suspects, including residents of Chattanooga, Ooltewah, Houston, and Ringgold, Georgia. The charges ranged from solicitation of a minor and patronizing prostitution to drug possession and firearms offenses.

In total, fourteen individuals were taken into custody during the two-day sting. Several agencies and non-governmental organizations, including Street Grace and Willowbend Farms, were also on site to provide support services to potential trafficking victims.

• Read details about a previous case in the same area HERE.

DISCLAIMER: All suspects are presumed innocent until proven guilty in a court of law. The arrest records or information about an arrest that are p