Two dozen men were arrested this month as part of a three-day operation targeting child predators, the Sacramento County Sheriff Office announced April 22.
Detectives with the Sacramento Valley Internet Crimes Against Children Task Force posed as girls 13 years old and younger during the sweep that led to 24 arrests of suspects ranging from 20 to 70 years old, according to Sheriff Jim Cooper.
“These predators are out there, and they prey on our kids, and we’ve got to stop it,” Mr. Cooper said during a news conference Monday.
Nearly 100 investigators from 21 law enforcement agencies participated in the operation.
The sheriff stressed to parents to know what their kids were doing online, saying law enforcement gets millions of tips involving sexual exploitation of minors from social media sites every year.
“How many more out there are doing this day-in and day-out?” he said.
The task force arranged to meet with suspects who contacted them online. The operation drew out men in some cases asking the “children” for photos and videos. Some sent pornographic material to the detectives.
The men showed up at arranged locations “ready to go,” the sheriff said. “They showed up with condoms in their pockets. They were fully prepared to come and have sex with a 13-year-old girl.”
In one case, a suspect thought he was meeting with a 10-year-old for sexual purposes, Sheriff’s Sgt. Eric Steindorf said Monday.
The suspect brought a six-foot ligature with him, and had lingerie and many sex toys in his vehicle when he was arrested, Mr. Steindorf said. A ligature is often used to tie things up.
One of those arrested was Spencer Parker of Carmichael, a fire captain with the San Jose Fire Department.
Officials there are reportedly conducting a separate investigation into the arrest.
Others arrested include a postal worker, a Sunday school teacher, and an elderly man who required the help of a walker, according to the sheriff.
The suspects were arrested on suspicion of several crimes, including felonies for contacting a minor with the intent of sex, harmful matter sent to a child, attempting lewd acts with a child under 14, lewd acts with a minor by force or fear, child pornography production, and illegal possession of an assault weapon.
Others arrested were David Castillo, of Woodland; David Melo, of Stockton; Karamveer Singh, of Fairfield; Alonzo Norton, of Elk Grove; Moncure Brown, of Tracy, Jorge Shockeyreis, of North Highlands; Jesus Lopez-Galiano, of Sacramento; Edwin Solano-Majano, of Antioch; Joshua Price, of Sacramento; Mark Sigl, of Sacramento; Christopher Varela, of Woodland; Edgar Garcia-Alvarez, of Modesto; Jeffrey Russell, of Modesto; Dean Rutter, of Placer County; William Petrone, of Lodi; Manish Pandey, of Campbell; Thomas French, of Vacaville; Kevin Wood, of Modesto; Hanmeet Sarang, of Fremont; Saul Alvarez, of Stockton; and Jeffrey Villalobos, of Martinez.
The sheriff’s office received funding for the operation, which is ongoing, from the state.
California Attorney General Rob Bonta applauded the operation.
“Our determination to fight sexual exploitation and human trafficking remains unwavering because even one person being exploited is unacceptable,” Mr. Bonta said in a press release Tuesday.
So far 19 cases have been referred to the Sacramento County District Attorney’s Office, according to Assistant District Attorney Dawn Bladet.
