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# Organizations and roles

April 2018, Trafficking and exploitation
[Backpage.com seizure](https://takedownindex.org/takedowns/backpage-com-seizure)

Last reviewed August 21, 2026

The public record puts 2 organizations on this action. Operational lead: FBI. The table lists the role the cited record assigns each one, in the record's own wording where it gives any.

## Why this page names organizations only

Roles on this page describe the agencies that took part. Individuals named in the public record appear on the takedown entry itself, under People and accountability.

## Organizations and roles

| Emblem | Organization | Role | What the record says |
| --- | --- | --- | --- |
| | [Federal Bureau of Investigation](https://takedownindex.org/organizations/federal-bureau-of-investigation), United States | Operational lead | Led the seizure and investigation. |
| | [United States Department of Justice](https://takedownindex.org/organizations/united-states-department-of-justice), United States | Prosecuting | Directed the federal indictment. |

## Accountability

### Legal authority

Federal indictment; seizure warrant.

### Oversight

The record assigns prosecuting or judicial roles to DOJ.

This page records organizational involvement as the cited sources state it. Where a role carries no description, the record gives none.

Last reviewed August 21, 2026