Swain County is a largely rural area in North Carolina with a population of approximately 14,000 residents.  Among the local efforts to  combat problems associated with prostitution and sex trafficking are those focusing on apprehending the buyers of sexual abuse of children.  In March 2018, a multiagency child exploitation operation over the St. Patrick’s Day holiday weekend that resulted in the arrest of three men who traveled at different times to an undisclosed location in the County with the intention of meeting minors for paid sexual abuse. Two of the men were charged with attempted statutory sex offense with an 11-year-old child, and the third was charged with attempted statutory sex offense with a child 15 years old or less, and soliciting prostitution.  All three men were also charged with “solicit by computer” and were taken to the Jackson County Jail and given secure bonds of over $200,000. The sheriff’s office said a fourth man was also arrested for soliciting prostitution and posted a $1,000 secure bond. Swain County Sheriff’s Office said multiple agencies participated in this operation, including Cherokee Indian Police Department, Bureau of Indian Affairs, Swain County Sheriff’s Office, Jackson County Sheriff’s Office, North Carolina Alcohol Law Enforcement, Drug Enforcement Administration Asheville Post of Duty, Asheville Police Department, Hendersonville Police Department, Cherokee County Sheriff’s Office, Homeland Security Investigations and the Internet Crimes Against Children Task Force.