An undercover operation targeting child predators nabbed 15 people from across Central Florida, the Orlando Police Department announced Thursday.<\/p>\n
Dubbed \u201cOperation Relentless Pursuit,\u201d the sting involved undercover local and federal officers posing as teens offering sex for money and as adults seeking minors for sex.<\/p>\n
The suspects went online to lure children into sexual activities, OPD said in a news release, and then traveled to an Orlando location to meet a child they thought was 13 or 14 years old.<\/p>\n
The operation began March 26, with arrests beginning shortly after. The men were charged with attempted lewd or lascivious battery, solicitation of a minor, and transmission of harmful material, among other crimes, Orange County court records show.<\/p>\n
\u201cThis operation is an example of the ongoing, relentless determination of federal, state and local law enforcement in protecting our most vulnerable,\u201d Special Agent in Charge Matthew Fodor of the FBI Tampa Division said. \u201cThis is tough work, and I commend these investigative teams in their tenacious pursuit to identify child predators and bring them to justice.\u201d<\/p>\n
Seven suspects charged so far are from Orlando: David Estrada-Ordo\u00f1ez, 28, Alonso Gil, 27, Anthony Koch, 37, Anthony McGeorge, 34, Giuseppe Penna, 35, Joshua Ribot, 28, and Joshua Velazquez, 30. The rest are from various cities throughout Central Florida: John Narvaez, 43, of Kissimmee; Alexis Aquino, 44, of Longwood; Jonathan Hanson, 35, of Leesburg; Joshua Miller, 34, of Melbourne; Niceforo Rendon, 37, of Okeechobee; and Terrance Perkins, 39, of Maitland.<\/p>\n
Two other suspects are not being named by the Orlando Sentinel as records of their cases do not yet appear on dockets in federal or state courts.<\/p>\n
In a statement, Orlando police Chief Eric Smith called the operation \u201ca clear example of OPD\u2019s commitment to protecting children and holding officers accountable.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cI would like to remind parents to monitor their children\u2019s online activity and report any suspicious incidents to their local law enforcement agency,\u201d Smith added.<\/p>\n
Filings in the Orange County court cases, which could provide more details about the accusations, were either not available as of Thursday afternoon or have been ordered sealed. The police department also said the investigation was ongoing, and it was not willing to release any more information.<\/p>\n
Most of the cases are expected to be handled by the Orange-Osceola State Attorney\u2019s Office and the Office of Statewide Prosecution. \u201cSelect cases\u201d will be tried by the U.S. Attorney\u2019s Office, OPD said in a news release, but those cases have not been identified.<\/p>\n
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