Law enforcement officials rescued 149 minors from pimps, including one as young as 12, in a nationwide crackdown on human trafficking, the Federal Bureau of Investigation said.

"When kids are treated as a commodity in seedy hotels and on dark roadsides, we must rescue them from their nightmare and severely punish those responsible for that horror," FBI Director James Comey said in a statement.

Comey vowed to "end the scourge of sex trafficking in our country" and praised local law enforcement agencies in 135 cities who helped conduct sweeps in hotels, casinos, truck stops and other areas frequented by sex traffickers and their customers.