TAMPA — Hillsborough County deputies arrested 89 people and filed more than 1,200 felony charges during a weeks-long undercover operation targeting people trying to sexually exploit children, the sheriff’s office said.
The operation ran from Jan. 1 through Feb. 6 and was led by the sheriff’s office Human Trafficking Section and Internet Predator Unit, according to the department. In each case, suspects believed they were communicating with minors or people willing to sell a child for sex. They were talking to detectives.
“In every instance, they were communicating with law enforcement and arranging their own arrest,” Sheriff Chad Chronister said.
Among those arrested was Stephen Fabic, 41, a math teacher at Hillsborough High School, who offered to pick up a teenager and bring them to his home for sexual activity, the sheriff’s office said.
John Altieri, 69, arranged a rideshare to pick up what he believed was a child and bring them to his home, according to deputies. Altieri was already on home confinement in Hernando County on drug charges at the time.
The operation also led to the rescue of at least two children. Detectives received a tip about the sexual exploitation of a 2-year-old and arrested Peter Torres, 42. The child was safely recovered, the sheriff’s office said.
In a separate case, detectives found a missing 17-year-old girl being exploited for commercial sex. She was rescued and her alleged trafficker, Armani Hopkins, 23, was arrested, according to the department.
“If you are using a hotel room, a chat app, or a fake profile to pursue a child, we are there,” Chronister said.
Some cases remain under investigation, the sheriff’s office said.