11 adults arrested, 15 endangered children recovered in separate Pueblo operations
Local, state and federal authorities converged on Pueblo last week to conduct separate operations, one which sought adults wanted on warrants and the other aimed at securing juveniles who had been reported missing or endangered.
Fifteen youths between 15 and 18 years old were found during "Operation Steel City Rescue." Most were runaways, according to a spokesperson with the Pueblo County Sheriff's Office. All had been missing long enough to be registered with the National Center for Missing and Exploited Children. Personnel from that organization joined the U.S. Marshals' Missing Child Unit, Colorado Department of Human Services, Colorado Violent Offender Task Force, Pueblo Police Department, Pueblo County Sheriff's Office, the Tenth Judicial District Attorney's Office, Colorado Bureau of Investigation, Colorado State Parole and Drug Enforcement Administration to locate and recover missing/endangered teenagers.
Simultaneously, the law enforcement agencies combined to sweep the area in "Operation Clean-Up." Ten men were arrested locally, according to the sheriff's office. Their offenses included failing to register as a sex offender and other "high profile or dangerous fugitive" warrants such as burglary, assault, drugs, and failing to comply with terms of their probation or release from jail.
Those arrested:
- Kenneth Guerrero, 62
- Wesley Lucas, 64
- Thomas Wilson, 32
- Reynaldo Maynard, 41
- Joseph Barcos, 48
- Nicholis Smith, 27
- Michael Salas, 48
- Brian Roberts, 27
- Tony Griego, 50
- Toby Kittinger, 24
An eleventh suspect was arrested in Florida.
The operations were carried out Tuesday through Thursday.
"This three-day operation has helped make Pueblo a safer place for our children and residents through the securing of missing children and apprehending individuals fleeing the law," Jeff Chostner, Tenth Judicial District Attorney, stated in a press release.
Planning for the operations began in January with a primary focus to find missing children in the Pueblo area. The project was expanded to include the fugitive round-up, according to Kirk M. Taylor, U.S. Marshal for the District of Colorado.
"We did an operation for missing children in Aurora (in November 2022) that was very successful," Taylor said. "We met with the Pueblo law enforcement community, and they were very receptive to doing a similar operation here."
The sheriff's office stated that the juveniles were considered some of the most at-risk and challenging recovery cases in the area. As they were recovered, officials from the Department of Human Services made a determination on whether they should be returned to family or if another placement was necessary.
