Former NFL player Tim Tebow on using his platform to combat child exploitation, human trafficking
Former NFL Player and and Tim Tebow Foundation founder and chairman Tim Tebow on his testimony before lawmakers on child exploitation, his foundation's mission to fight human trafficking and its 'Night to Shine' event for those with special needs.
Tim Tebow opened up Sunday about his effort to help victims of child trafficking and exploitation in the United States and around the world.
The former NFL quarterback appeared on Fox News Channel’s "Fox News Sunday" with host Shannon Bream to talk about the world through the Tim Tebow Foundation and other agencies to combat what he called "one of the worst evils in the world."
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Tim Tebow testifies before the House Judiciary Subcommittee on Crime and Federal Government Surveillance on Capitol Hill on March 6, 2024. (Kent Nishimura/Getty Images)
"I was made aware of this several years ago, just the depth of it by one of our team members," Tebow said. "She said to me, ‘I believe there is 20,000 boys and girls that are still unidentified.’
"So, law enforcement can see their abuse and rape images but they haven’t been able to identify them. So, if you can’t identify them, how could you possibly get to them?"
It led to partnerships with Homeland Security, Interpol and Europol, among law enforcement agencies, along with other companies and countries.
"We found that it’s not 20,000 kids that are unknown or unidentified, it’s over 50,000 boys and girls through the backlog that are unidentified in these global databases," he added. "There are so many boys and girls and 65% of them are under the age of 12 and 4.3% of them – that’s 2,100 – are infants."
Tim Tebow on stage during the International Poverty Forum at Porsche Cars North America on March 4, 2022, in Atlanta. (Derek White/Getty Images)
Tebow’s foundation works with law enforcement in hopes of bringing the abusers to justice. He said one of the appeals he and his group were making on Capitol Hill earlier in the week was to bring more funding to his effort and bring in more victim identification specialists.
Tebow and the foundation worked with Homeland Security Investigations on "Operation Renewed Hope" – a three-week "surge" of investigations into child abuse in 2023. The foundation said it located "311 probable identifications of previously unknown victims, including 14 positive contacts and confirmed the rescue of several victims from active abuse."
Former Gators quarterback and Heisman Trophy winner Tim Tebow reacts as he is honored after being inducted into the College Football Hall of Fame during the game between Florida and Florida State at Ben Hill Griffin Stadium on Nov. 25, 2023, in Gainesville. (James Gilbert/Getty Images)
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The foundation said at the time the operation was considered the "most successful of its kind."
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