Missing Mesa child located in Washington encampment

The US Marshals Service has located a child reported missing in Mesa in May at a Washington campground.

On June 18, the National Center for Missing and Exploited Children informed US Marshals that the child was perhaps a victim of sex trafficking in Washington state.

According to officials, a marshal assigned to investigate swiftly developed information that led him to a 20-acre homeless encampment known as “The Jungle” in Olympia, which has a high prevalence of criminal activity and violence.

U.S. Marshals and the Washington State Department of Corrections scoured the area Thursday and discovered the child, according to officials.

The youngster was turned over to the Olympia Police Department and the Washington State Department of Children, Youth, and Families.

“Protecting our nation’s children is of the highest importance,” said Donrien Stephens, acting U.S. marshal for the Western District of Washington. “The excellent investigative efforts, collaboration, and persistence of our local, state, and community partners lead to the safe recovery of a youth with an elevated risk of human trafficking and commercial sexual exploitation.”