Authorities rescued 34 missing children across Queens and Long Island over a 72-hour period this week as part of a sweeping law enforcement investigation, officials announced Friday.
The “Long Island Children Rescue Operation” ended disappearances that had lasted from several days to as long as 10 years. The children, who ranged in age from 7 to 18, were connected with services and support following their recovery.
Nearly all of the children were considered runaways, though officials said some had endured horrific exploitation and human trafficking.
“A total of 10,629 children younger than 18 were reported missing to police across New York State in 2025, with 94% reported as runaways,” New York State Police Superintendent Steven James said in a statement Friday.
“During that year, police closed 10,672 cases involving children reported missing in 2025 or earlier years. At the end of 2025, there were 1,079 active missing children cases statewide.”
The multiagency investigation unfolded from Tuesday through Thursday, with nearly three dozen children located during the intensive operation. Investigators coordinated their work from a command center in Garden City, Nassau County.
According to Newsday, the children included 18 from Nassau County, 12 from Suffolk County and four from Queens. Another 31 local missing-child cases remain open, the governor’s office said.
The effort was New York’s fourth large-scale child rescue operation of its kind.
Earlier operations in Erie County, the Capital Region and Westchester County resulted in the recovery of 168 missing children and teenagers.
Nearly 100 professionals representing 40 agencies and organizations participated in the operation. Their work focused not only on locating the vulnerable children but also on connecting them with essential care, including medical treatment and basic daily necessities.
“Not every case ends with a dramatic rescue, a door being kicked in, and a child being carried to safety,” said Kevin Branzetti, chief executive officer of the National Child Protection Task Force.
“The reality is that finding a child quickly — hopefully before something bad happens — often takes a coordinated effort. But finding them is only the first step,” he said.
“We need to listen and understand why they left, what they experienced while they were gone, and most importantly, what we can do to help.”
In February, a major child rescue operation in Westchester County recovered 43 missing and runaway children. The effort was led by the state Division of Criminal Justice Services and involved 70 federal, state and local agencies.
That operation was based at a hotel in Mount Kisco and represented the state’s third large-scale child rescue initiative.
Law enforcement officers, child-services workers and digital technology specialists searched throughout the suburban county, concentrating on communities with high numbers of missing-child cases, including Dobbs Ferry, Mount Pleasant, Mount Vernon, White Plains and Yonkers, according to the Division of Criminal Justice Services.
“Everyone is in the room focused on one task, and when something is needed, it’s a conversation across the table instead of a phone call,” Tim Williams, a program manager at the division’s Missing Persons Clearinghouse, told The Post.
The governor’s press office did not immediately respond to The Post’s request for comment.
