A national FBI initiative to crack down on child sex trafficking included Hancock County in its sweep, resulting in two local arrests.

Operation Cross Country IX was carried out in 135 cities in the past week and involved dozens of cooperating law enforcement agencies, including the Hancock County Sheriff’s Department.

Eight deputies posed as potential sex customers, known as johns, and worked in other capacities to assist the FBI Wheeling Field Office, Sheriff Ralph Fletcher said.

“I have received complaints in the past involving prostitution, which we actively pursued with our limited staff,” Fletcher said. “I was very enthusiastic when the FBI offered to come into our jurisdiction to help with these types of offenses.”

Although the operation was directed at child sex trafficking, it also yielded arrests relating to prostitution and solicitation.

One of two arrests in Hancock County involved an alleged prostitute from Ohio who met an undercover detective at a hotel room at Mountaineer Casino, Racetrack & Resort on Oct. 6.

Cecil Justine Darby, 31, was arrested on a misdemeanor prostitution charge and is being held at the Northern Regional Jail in Moundsville. Darby identifies as a transgender person and goes by the nickname “Juicy Angel,” according to a criminal complaint filed in Hancock County Magistrate Court.

Darby came to Mountaineer after an undercover officer responded to an ad on a social networking site. According to the complaint, the online post said, “The best lover you will ever have. No games! Non-nervous men only. … No scary men please! I am versatile.”

At Mountaineer, when the officer brought up sexual scenarios, Darby said he wanted to discuss money first. When the officer asked how much, Darby allegedly mentioned the amount of $300, according to the complaint.

After his arrest, Darby said he had been prostituting for about six years, more recently online, and was trying to raise money for hormone therapy, according to the complaint.

FBI officials hope that information gleaned from such arrests will uncover organized efforts to prostitute women and children across state lines.

Fletcher said the operation, although national in scope, was done in cooperation with local law enforcement agencies because the FBI isn’t familiar with every area.

“They needed bodies. They needed local people,” he said.

Hancock County deputies were paired with FBI agents and helped with undercover work and surveillance. “The experience they got was immeasurable,” Fletcher said.

In northern West Virginia and western Pennsylvania, Operation Cross Country led to 25 arrests on state charges, including the arrest of two pimps. Three purported victims of human trafficking were rescued.