An Aurora man was sentenced Friday to 23 years to life in prison for repeated sexual assaults on a 13-year-old child.

The 18th Judicial District Attorney’s Office said Steffano Shayron Simpson, 22, had a close relationship with the child’s family and was often invited to their home to play video games. Between June 10, 2011 and Nov. 30, 2011, officials said, Simpson would come into the girl’s bedroom and cover the child’s mouth when he attacked her so no one could hear her cries for help. The defendant also threatened the child to keep her from telling anyone about the assaults.

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The case was brought to the attention of the Aurora Police Department when the victim disclosed to a family friend of the assaults. The friend told the victim to tell her grandmother and mother.

Simpson was convicted in July on two felony counts of sex assault on a child — pattern of abuse. If he is paroled, he would be on parole for a minimum of 20 years and a maximum of his natural life.

Eugene Police said they’ve started an undercover social media sting operation to catch sexual predators, and their results are eye-opening.

Detectives posted on a social media site as an underage teen on Friday morning. Within 3 hours they received 85 texts from different numbers, all from people hoping to meet up with who they thought was a young female.

“Scary to think an innocent posting can get that kind of response. The message isn’t sexually explicit, it has nothing to do with sex,” said Special Investigations Sgt. Scott McKee.

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The sergeant said his department has been undercover since July, posting to social media as young teens who may “need someone to talk to.”

He said the communication instantly turns sexual.

“(With) these operations we’re learning that this is happening here and that our children are vulnerable,” said Sgt. McKee.

So far they’ve arrested 8 people, including Jorge Guzman Tapia who was arrested in Friday’s sting.

The man though he was meeting a young girl inside DSW Shoe Store in Eugene. An undercover detective was able to identify Guzman-Tapia, who answered the phone when officers called him back after texting to meet up.

Seven others are in the Lane County Jail on charges of first-degree online corruption of a minor, which Sgt. McKee described as all the suspects allegedly agreed to have sex with a child under 15.

“If they’re responding to these ads, they’ve done it before. That’s the worry. That there’s children being victimized and we’re just scratching the surface,” said Sgt. McKee.

Police say this should be a warning to parents, who should monitor your children’s online usage and know who they’re communicating with.

“There’s people out there, adults, that are manipulating your children and you as a parent don’t necessarily know who your child is communicating with,” the sergeant said.

Police are asking the public’s help in locating a man missing from the South Chicago neighborhood since Friday.

Geremy Frank, 37, was last seen walking in the 8100 block of South South Shore Drive, according to a missing person alert from Chicago Police.

Frank is described as a 6-foot, 230-pound black man with brown eyes, black hair and a dark complexion, police said. He wears glasses and was last seen wearing a white T-shirt, blue jogging pants and flip-flops.

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Police said he suffers from dementia.

Anybody with information about Frank’s whereabouts is asked to contact Area South detectives at (312) 747-8274.

Albuquerque Police are seeking help in locating Bob Pachta, 76, who was last seen around 10 a.m. Friday in the area of Indian School and Morris NE, in Albuquerque.

Police say he is 5-foot 9-inches tall, weighs 145 lbs and has green eyes and white hair. He is possibly wearing a plaid shirt and blue jeans.

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He wears glasses and suffers from Alzheimer’s disease.

Anyone with possible information on him is asked to contact Albuquerque Police Department’s Missing Person Unit, 505-908-8552 or 505-924-6093.

A Plano man was sentenced Friday to 30 years in prison without the possibility of parole after he was convicted of continuous sexual abuse of a young child, the Collin County District Attorney’s Office said.

Tom Iles White, 41, received another 10-year prison sentence stacked on top of that after jurors convicted him on four counts of indecency with a child by contact.

Collin County jurors also sentenced White to five years in prison for indecency by exposure. Presiding Judge James Fry stacked the sentences so that White will have to serve 40 years total.

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Prosecutors say White began showing pornography to a girl when she was 4 years old. He began molesting her at age 6. He made her participate in sex acts multiple times per week for the next six years.

At age 12, the girl confided with a relative about what was happening, saying she “just wanted it to stop.”

Plano Police and Child Protective Services investigated. A search warrant at White’s home uncovered a bag of teenage-themed pornography. White’s work laptop and hard drive for his home computer were missing when police conducted their search, prosecutors say.

The father of two missing Maryland toddlers has teamed up with the Maryland Missing Person’s Network in an effort to locate his young children.

Montgomery County police have searched thousands of acres of land this week in the search for 2-year-old Jacob and 3-year-old Sarah. Their mother, Catherine Hoggle, has yet to reveal the exact location of her two children, telling police she gave them to a friend before changing her story. Jacob was last seen Sept. 7 and Sarah was last seen the following day.

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Hoggle said the two were “alive and safe,” but police have transitioned to a homicide investigation based on the amount of time the children have been gone and the 15-hour interrogation of the Montgomery County mom.

The children’s dad, Troy Turner, told News4 he’s confident Sarah and Jacob are alive, and that Hoggle is incapable of harming them. All week, he’s been searching for the kids along with friends and co-workers, and Friday, he launched a new search with the help of Maryland Missing Person’s Network.

“[I’ll keep looking for them until] someone turns my kids in or I kick down a door and go get them,” he said. “Whatever reality she’s formed, she feels like she’s protecting the children by hiding them.”

Montgomery County police say they have reviewed the group’s plan to make sure that it is safe and as effective as possible. While police say they do not endorse the community search, the department is providing some guidance and expertise.

A member of the police search team will act as a liaison, or direct link, for the community search group.

Volunteers should meet at Seneca Valley High School in Germantown starting 8:30 a.m. Saturday and Sunday mornings. They can also go the Chick-Fil-A on Aircraft Drive in Germantown.

Police say a thief made off with more than $42,000 worth of electronics from a Whitley County Walmart. Two months later, police caught up with the person who they now believe is behind similar thefts in at least six states.

The smash and grab happened some time between 2am and 3am on July 20th at the Williamsburg Walmart.

From Georgia to Indiana, Williamsburg police believe Jovan Yohansan hit 15 to 25 Walmarts, each time making off with thousands of dollars worth of electronics, the largest haul in Williamsburg, more than $42,000 worth of stuff in less than seven minutes.

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“Went straight back to electronics department and used what we believe to be a window punch and punched the glass on the display case loaded up iPads, iPhones, iPods, all the high tickets items and exited the store,” said Williamsburg Police Chief Wayne Bird.

Each time the same method with the same getaway van.

“That late at night most Walmart super centers are not very busy,” said Chief Bird. “The individual obviously knows Walmart’s routine.”

Surveillance video from the store showed the person getting into a van. Officers were able to track the license plate to a rental company where they were able to identify Yohansan.

Then earlier this week, a break in the case. Police in Browden County Florida pulled over Yohansan, who is now lodged in the Whitley County Detention Center.

“Right now the individual is wanted in three states of course Kentucky, Tennessee and Ohio and we expect charges out of Georgia, Indiana, Illinois and there are multiple other cities in Ohio,” said Chief Bird.

Investigators think Yohansan tried to do the same thing at the London Walmart, was unsuccessful then drove straight to Williamsburg.

‘I would encourage any departments that have had similar thefts in the electronics department to call us so we can get together on this thing and get him charged for all of them,” said Chief Bird.

Police say a driver was behind the wheel of the van used in the smash and grab. Investigators are still looking for that person.

Two people in Clay County face charges in a child sex abuse case.

A grand jury indicted both Wendy Mills and Rodney Smith earlier this year in the case.

In the indictment, officials wrote Rodney Smith with the help of Wendy Mills had sexual intercourse with a child younger than 12 years old.

Court officials tell us Smith has not yet been arrested.

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He faces two counts of sodomy and sexual abuse.

Sheriff’s deputies arrested Mills Wednesday, she faces two counts of complicity to commit sodomy and complicity to commit sexual abuse charges.

She is scheduled for arraignment on October 6th.

An arrest warrant has been issued for a man indicted with murder in a deadly crash that happened in Laurel County this past June.

On Friday morning, 21-year-old Justin Wibbles was charged with murder, wanton endangerment and reckless driving in court, to which he failed to show up. A warrant was issued for his arrest and his bond was set at $200,000 cash.

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Officials say Wibbles was traveling westbound on KY 30 when he struck a white Dodge van traveling eastbound head-on.

Jerry Thompson of East Bernstadt had to be extricated from the van he was driving and was pronounced dead at the scene.