Dozens of minors were rescued during an operation in which investigators posed as teenage girls in online chat rooms

Hundreds of suspected child predators have been apprehended and dozens of minors rescued in a sweeping multi-agency crackdown across Southern California targeting internet-facilitated child exploitation, the Los Angeles Police Department (LAPD) has said.

A total of 341 suspects were arrested and 40 minors rescued during Operation Firewall, which was spearheaded by the Internet Crimes Against Children (ICAC) Task Force and ran from April 19 through May 3 across Los Angeles, Orange, San Bernardino, Santa Barbara, and Ventura counties.

According to a Thursday press release by the LAPD, the operation was aimed at "identifying and apprehending predators who use the internet to facilitate the sexual exploitation and abuse of children."

The LAPD said investigators conducted "proactive undercover investigations" across multiple social media platforms and executed numerous search and arrest warrants during the sting. Those arrested are suspected of offenses including the production, possession, and distribution of child pornography, "lewd acts with a child," and human trafficking.

Speaking at a press conference on Thursday, Los Angeles County District Attorney Nathan Hawkman detailed that the operation involved hundreds of officers from 30 different law enforcement agencies.

Orange County Sheriff Don Barnes revealed that the investigators had posed as "teenage girls as young as 13 years old" in chat rooms and online gaming platforms, where suspects "groomed them, and then made arrangements to meet those young girls."

First Assistant US Attorney for the Central District of California Bill Essayli said the "cases we're announcing today are just a small drop in the bucket," warning that many more offenses remain undetected.

"Every single one of these cases is our worst nightmare," Essayli said, urging parents and caregivers to keep children off the internet because "nothing good comes from it."

Eddie Wang, the special agent in charge for Homeland Security Investigations in Los Angeles, similarly spoke of an overwhelming "epidemic" of internet-facilitated child sex abuse in Southern California.