FBI Director Kash Patel went on Fox News this week and put three numbers on the board: 3,400 child predators arrested, 7,200 children located or rescued, and 3 million pedophile accounts dismantled on the Tor network. He said all of it is up 99 percent over the best year of the Biden administration.
🚨STUNNING: Kash Patel just dropped massive numbers.
— Commentary Donald J. Trump Posts From Truth Social (@TrumpDailyPosts) June 6, 2026
The FBI dismantled 3 million pedophile accounts on the Tor network.
They arrested 3,400 child predators a 99% increase from Biden’s best year.
7,200 kids were rescued.
HT @EricLDaugh pic.twitter.com/7kSilcoVuh
"Just think about the 7,200 kids that we found that got to go home," Patel said. "That means kids are being protected at levels that are simply unheard of."
To get there, Patel said the bureau pulled 1,500 employees out of Washington and put them in the field permanently, working alongside state and local law enforcement.
"We didn't just do the physical work on the streets," Patel said. "We went to the cyber community and we dismantled 3 million pedophile accounts off the Tor network where these predators prey on our children and think they can hide from this FBI. They can't."
The interview came the same week Patel announced the results of Operation Grayskull. The global operation targeted four major child sexual abuse websites on the dark web and produced 19 arrests in the United States, with additional arrests in seven other countries.
Patel said many of those arrested had no prior criminal record.
Patel said in a video briefing:
"Shockingly, many of these perpetrators had no prior criminal records. They were people we knew and trusted: neighbors, colleagues, even family members. They were active in our communities and around our children."
Tracking perpetrators on the dark web often takes years, and the FBI's Child Exploitation Operational Unit coordinated the effort across multiple countries.
In Tennessee, the FBI arrested Zachary Sweeney, who is accused of coercing multiple minors into producing child sexual abuse material between 2022 and 2025. Investigators allege Sweeney sold some of the material, traveled to abuse victims, drugged minors, and livestreamed sexual assaults online. One victim later died from an overdose. Patel announced the arrest on X and described violence tied to 764, an online extremist network that targets minors, as one of the most important issues the bureau confronts daily.
Meanwhile, Texas authorities announced the results of Operation Soteria Shield, a joint effort that drew in 91 law enforcement agencies across the state. The operation resulted in 276 arrests and the rescue of 89 children.
Discussing the results of Operation Soteria Shield, Patel said:
"These are young lives saved, families reunited, and future crimes prevented by brave law enforcement doing their jobs."
On May 29, Montrey Roseberry, 20, of Orlando, was sentenced to life in federal prison after being convicted of coercion and enticement of a minor and production and possession of child sexual abuse material. Prosecutors said Roseberry posed as a woman on social media to lure minors into sending explicit images, then used those images to extort victims into producing increasingly graphic content. He threatened children with death in some cases and sent victims photographs of their homes along with the names of their family members and classmates. The scheme affected more than 50 victims across the country.
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The same week, James Bernard Grover, 63, of Deltona, was sentenced to life in prison after being convicted of coercing and enticing an autistic minor to engage in sexual activity. Grover founded the Special Needs Advocacy Program, a nonprofit serving the special-needs community based in Sanford, and used it to reach victims. Federal authorities said Grover used his position to gain access to vulnerable children. Additional reporting indicated he preyed primarily on boys on the autism spectrum and used cruise ships in international waters to carry out abuse.
It was the first time an FBI field office has secured two life sentences against child predators in the same week.
Patel credited FBI Tampa for the milestone.
"Thanks to outstanding work by FBI Tampa and our partners, these two life sentences reflect that we're not slowing down. Anyone who targets kids will feel the full weight of American justice."
Patel said the bureau intends to continue expanding those efforts.
"We are going to the ends of the earth and the cyber realm to make sure our kids are safeguarded," Patel said. "The numbers speak for themselves because the FBI are putting kids first."
Editor’s Note: The American people overwhelmingly support President Trump’s law and order agenda.
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