Charlotte police, advocates say they’re fighting secrecy in child sexual abuse cases

The Charlotte-Mecklenburg Police Department launched an awareness campaign Wednesday to combat child sexual abuse, bringing together law enforcement, prosecutors and community advocates to spotlight an issue that officials say remains vastly underreported.

“This week is about bringing awareness to that topic,” said Sgt. Andrew Greenlees with CMPD’s Crimes Against Children Unit. “I understand that this is something that people don’t want to talk about. It’s completely natural not to want to talk about this. It’s a human reaction, but it’s something that we need to talk about.”

According to national statistics shared during the event, only 30% of child sexual assaults are reported. Officials emphasized that in 90% of cases, the abuser is someone known to the victim — often a trusted family member, teacher, coach or other authority figure.

“It’s not the typical white van thing or stranger danger type of issues,” the sergeant explained. “It’s someone that is known and trusted by the family.”

More from Jesse Pierre: https://www.wcnc.com/article/news/crime/child-sex-assault-crime/275-4b61a412-d353-4533-aa8e-8c1a639de55b

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