Missing-child recovery operations have become a larger focus for federal and local law enforcement as agencies expand joint efforts across state lines. In Ohio, that work culminated in Operation Meridian, a monthlong effort that authorities said located 79 reported missing and endangered children statewide. The case drew added attention after investigators said one 13-year-old girl who had been missing since 2024 was found hidden inside a crawlspace at a home in Lockbourne.
Operation Meridian recovered 79 children across Ohio in August
The U.S. Marshals Service announced on September 8 that Operation Meridian concluded with 79 reported missing and endangered children found in Ohio, calling it the largest missing-child operation in state history. According to the Marshals Service, the children were between ages 6 and 17 and were located during an operation conducted throughout August. U.S. Marshal Michael Black said the agency used the same fugitive-task-force methods it applies in violent-crime cases to help recover children and reunite them with families.
The Marshals Service said the cases involved a range of circumstances, including suspected sex trafficking, physical and emotional abuse, neglect, runaway cases and other forms of endangerment. Authorities stated that investigators coordinated across federal, state and local jurisdictions and tracked leads that extended as far as Georgia. The agency also said children were connected after recovery with medical, psychological and social-service providers for follow-up care.
One of the most closely watched recoveries involved two sisters, ages 13 and 16, according to the Marshals Service. Authorities said the girls had been reported missing in July 2024 and April 2026. Investigators said the 13-year-old was found concealed in a basement crawlspace hidden in the floor of a bedroom closet at a home in the 900 block of Hibbs Road in Lockbourne, and the 16-year-old was recovered later the same day at a restaurant in the 600 block of Harrisburg Pike in Columbus.
The central Ohio case gave the statewide operation a specific local focus. According to the Marshals Service, Southern Ohio deputies worked with the Columbus Police Department on the long-term missing-child investigation involving the two sisters. The agency said the mother of the girls was arrested on an outstanding Franklin County warrant for probation violation during the recovery effort.
What remains unclear is how many of the 79 children were recovered in each Ohio region, and authorities have not released a comprehensive city-by-city breakdown. The Marshals Service identified Akron, Cleveland, Columbus and Toledo as examples of jurisdictions involved, but it did not publish a full list of all recovery locations or individual case details. It also did not say how many investigations are still tied to possible criminal charges beyond the arrests or interviews described in the release.
The agency did confirm another central case in northwest Ohio during the operation. On August 18, a 16-year-old girl was reported missing to Toledo police, and the Marshals-led SPEAR Unit began working the case because she had previously been identified as a victim of human trafficking, according to the release. Authorities said investigators tracked leads in Toledo and Michigan, found the girl with an adult male at a Woodward Avenue address in Toledo, and took her for medical evaluation while local police investigated possible criminal activity.
Federal officials said Operation Meridian was designed to address missing-child cases that can span multiple agencies and jurisdictions. The Marshals Service said the operation focused on children reported missing under a wide range of endangerment circumstances, a mix that often requires coordination between local police, federal investigators, child-protection agencies and service providers. The release also listed support from departments and task forces across Ohio, along with federal partners including the FBI, Homeland Security Investigations and HUD’s Office of Inspector General.
State data shows why Ohio agencies have kept missing-child cases in public focus. In its 2025 Ohio Missing Children Clearinghouse report, the Ohio Attorney General’s Office said 15,367 children were reported missing in the state in 2025, down from 2024 levels but still a large caseload for law enforcement and child-welfare systems. The attorney general’s office has also said missing-child reports can reflect a broad mix of situations, and cases are closed in the NCIC database once a child is found.
For Ohio residents, the immediate takeaway is that the 79 recoveries do not describe a single incident but a statewide operation covering many different case types. Officials have said recovery is only the first step, with children then referred for trauma-informed counseling, family reunification services and longer-term case management when needed. As of the September 8 announcement, authorities had not released a fuller accounting of each case, but the Marshals Service said Operation Meridian showed how multiagency teams are now being used to locate vulnerable children more quickly.