Sixteen men were arrested in a sting operation this week when they drove to Johnson County to meet what they expected to be underage girls.
Some came armed, or with drugs to meet girls they thought were 14 or 15 years old. Suspects range from 21 to 67 years old. They drove from cities all around North Texas.
Arrest affidavits detail online exchanges showing what they wanted. What they got was jail, and a felony arrest.
http://liarcatchers.com/pedophile_tracking.html
“The last thing that hit me when we got home last night is that we arrested 16 people that were going out in our community to rape a child,” said Commander Adam King. He runs the “Stop the Offender Program” in Johnson County.
He coordinated the sting, in which officers pretended to be children online. King says registered sex offender Jonathan Leever responded, as did attorney James Hice. His online profile shows a purple heart and silver star as a Marine.
Cleburne, Burleson and Johnson County officers took part in the online investigations and arrests.
“These guys just started soliciting people they thought were children for sex,” King says. “We weren’t pursuing them. They were pursuing us.”
King, and Cleburne Lieutenant Shane Wickson praise the Texas Attorney General’s office for training and supervision.
“We are better equipped to handle this type of crime from here on out,” said Lieutenant Wickson. “This isn’t a one-shot deal.”
It can’t be, says the head of Johnson County Children’s Advocacy.
“We’re seeing an astronomical increase in what we call the technology facilitated crimes against children,” said Tammy King.
In response, the Children’s Advocacy Center in Johnson County has launched an online program to make it easier for children to reach authorities or advocates. King says about 40 percent of the center’s cases now involve some kind of online contact between perpetrator and victim.
After making so many arrests so quickly, Commander Adam King described the results of the sting as “scary.”
“It’s a wake up call that there are that many of these guys running around,” he said.
