OSCEOLA COUNTY, Fla. — Twenty men were arrested during an undercover operation targeting adults accused of attempting to exploit children online, according to the Osceola County Sheriff’s Office.
“Operation Cooked” was conducted from Sept. 2 through Sept. 5 and involved investigators from multiple local, state and federal agencies.
The Sheriff’s Office said undercover detectives posed as minors while communicating with the suspects online. Tactical teams arrested the men after they allegedly arrived at arranged meeting locations expecting to meet children for sexual activity.
“These 20 individuals believed a screen granted them anonymity to target children. Instead, it led them straight to a jail cell,” Osceola County Sheriff Christopher Blackmon said.
Those arrested range in age from 22 to 64, according to the Sheriff’s Office. Investigators said five have young children and three were visiting the area on vacation.
The Sheriff’s Office identified the suspects as:
- Luis Angel Lopez-Cruz
- Aquagious Keith Williams
- Leslie A. Anderson
- Christian Noguera-Quintero
- Martin Alejandro Rojas-Castillo
- Bryson Eric Herzberger
- Eric Daniel Kreft
- Abraham Jacob Zamora
- Carlos Omar Valdez-Rosales
- Thomas George Walsh
- Danny Joseph Rios-Gonzalez
- Walter Heger
- Andrew William Chandler
- Johnny Arturo Sanabria-Lopez
- Juan Sebastian Beltran-Robayo
- Jaquain Akeem Rhodan
- Isaiah Manuel Padovan
- Jonathan Leonard Leyva-Pasquali
- Franklin Safe-Agyare
- Joshua Allen Edwards
The Sheriff’s Office said five of those arrested were in the United States unlawfully. Officials identified them as Rojas-Castillo, Beltran-Robayo, Valdez-Rosales, Leyva-Pasquali and Noguera-Quintero.
The Office of Statewide Prosecution is leading the prosecution of the cases. The operation included personnel from the Orlando Police Department and the sheriff’s offices in Orange, Polk and Columbia counties, along with the St. Cloud Police Department, Lake City Police Department and Homeland Security.
The allegations have not been proven in court. Each defendant is presumed innocent unless found guilty.
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