During a two-week period from April 5 to April 19, 2025, the San Bernardino County Sheriff’s Department carried out Operation Spring Cleaning. This county-wide initiative aimed to identify and arrest perpetrators of online sexual abuse against children, rescue affected minors, and ensure compliance with registration rules among registered sex offenders.
The operation involved over 480 compliance checks on registered offenders, resulting in several arrests for failing to register as a sex offender under PC 290. Additionally, more than 30 residential search warrants led to arrests under PC 311.11 for possession of child pornography, PC 311.1(a) for distribution of child pornography, and PC 29800(a)(1) for a felon in possession of a firearm. Undercover chat operations were also conducted, where officers posed as minors online to catch suspects attempting criminal activity, which resulted in multiple arrests.
The Sheriff’s Department succeeded in rescuing several children from ongoing abuse and arrested or obtained arrest warrants for 73 suspects in San Bernardino County. These arrests were related to various charges involving child victims, including failure to register as a sex offender, rape, lewd acts with minors, contacting minors for lewd purposes, and possession and distribution of child pornography.
For additional information or to report non-compliant sex offenders, the public is encouraged to contact the San Bernardino County Sheriff’s Department at (909) 387-8313. Anonymous tips can be provided via We-Tip at 1-888-78-CRIME or through their website.
The operation was handled by the Specialized Investigations Division – Crimes Against Children Detail.
San Bernardino County Sheriff-Coroner Shannon D. Dicus is at the helm of these efforts.
