70% of Child Prostitutes are Foster Children

According to FBI agent Gregory Christopher--who was recently named the State/Federal Law Enforcement Officer of the Year--"about 70 percent" of child prostitutes in the Tampa area are foster children.

"A lot of these kids are foster kids, runaway kids. There's not a lot of people looking out for them. I'd say about 70 percent or so are foster kids."

Last year, 22 children were removed from their pimps in Hillsborough and Pinellas county Florida. According to Christopher, "I have no doubt there's a lot more out there. I get at least two or three leads a week. We can't act on everything. There's no way."


For the complete interview of Agent Christopher, check out this article in the St. Petersburg Times.