Internet Crimes Against Children (ICAC)

Background

The Louisa County Sheriff's Office is an affiliate member of the Southern Virginia Internet Crimes Against Children (SOVA ICAC) Task Force. Virginia is divided into 2 ICAC regions. SOVA ICAC is coordinated through the Bedford County, Virginia Sheriff's Office and NOVA (Northern Virginia) ICAC is coordinated by the Virginia State Police. In general, the ICAC Task Force is a nationwide group of member agencies whose mission is to intercept, track down and arrest those who operate on the World Wide Web to sexually exploit children through use of the Internet, electronics and related means.
ICAC Logo

Program

ICAC investigations are typically conducted in 2 ways:
  1. Undercover operations on the Internet to help provide a law enforcement barrier between the sexual predators on the Internet and the actual children who may be online.
  2. Undercover operations may be conducted in a number of different ways, all with the same goal in mind of apprehending those who would seek to prey on the children of Louisa County, the Commonwealth of Virginia and the United States of America.
Second, as an ICAC Affiliate Agency, the Louisa County Sheriff's Office also proactively seeks those who may trade in images which portray children in a sexually exploitative manner, identify those traders and apprehend them. Being an ICAC Affiliate Agency affords the Louisa Sheriff's Office Investigators access to specialized software and tools to aid in their investigations.
ICAC Logo with Computer
One other major goal of the ICAC Task Force is preventative education. Louisa County ICAC Investigators have partnered with Louisa's Learn and Win (LAW) Instructors to help educate school-aged children about the dangers of online interactions and the consequences of bad choices online. Additionally, Internet Safety presentations may be available to local civic groups and community organizations through requests to the Louisa Sheriff's Office and/or the Louisa County Commonwealth Attorney's Office.

Reporting Abuse

If you suspect a child of being a victim of Internet sexual exploitation, you may contact the Louisa County Sheriff's Office 540-967-1234) and report the suspected activity to any officer. You may also email any tips, requests, concerns or comments to the Special Operations and ICAC Division. Any information you give will be forwarded to ICAC Investigators for further action.

Record

To date, the Louisa County Sheriff's Office ICAC program, in partnership with the Louisa County Commonwealth Attorney's Office, is responsible for the 3 highest courtroom sentences in Virginia history for online sexual solicitation of children.