Operation Predator Child Sex Sting
Eight men thought they were meeting up with a child for sex in Ohio, instead, they ended up behind bars thanks to Operation Predator. The Gallia County Sheriff conducted the sting. After hearing the evidence, The Gallia County Grand Jury indicted eight men. Sheriff Matt Champlin said the guys all thought they were meeting up with a child under the age of sixteen to pay for sex.
Sheriff Champlin said, “In this technological age every day we are seeing the youth of our county being taken advantage of by individuals more and more through electronic devices and social media. As your sheriff, this scares me, as a parent myself this absolutely terrifies me.”
Champlin said he directed a special team that spent the last several months investigating online sexual predators. The investigation was named, ‘Operation Predator.’
Check out the men arrested for attempting to pay a child for sex in these next slides:
Ryan A. Washburn
Ryan A. Washburn, age 31, of Guysville, Ohio charged with (2) counts of Compelling Prostitution and (1) count of Importuning.
Rodney L. Weaver
Rodney L. Weaver Jr., age 41, of Albany, Ohio charged with (2) counts of Compelling Prostitution and (1) count of Importuning.
Christopher A. Jett
Christopher A. Jett, age 41, of Parkersburg, W.V., charged with (2) counts of Compelling Prostitution and (1) count of Importuning.
George M. Cremeans
George M. Cremeans, age 41, of Gallipolis, Ohio, charged with (2) counts of Compelling Prostitution and (1) count of Importuning.
Kyle A. Sammons
Kyle A. Sammons, age 37, of Kitts Hill, Ohio, charged with (2) counts of Compelling Prostitution and (1) count of Importuning.
Jon A. Mattea
Jon A. Mattea, age 43, of Cheshire, Ohio, charged with (2) counts of Compelling Prostitution and (1) count of Importuning.
Willard R. Williams III
Willard R. Williams III, age 48, of Ray, Ohio, charged with (2) counts of Compelling Prostitution and (1) count of Importuning.
Rodney L. Ault
Rodney L. Ault, age 43, of Gnadenhutten, Ohio, charged with (2) counts of Compelling Prostitution and (1) count of Importuning.
Not Done Yet
The sheriff said his department is far from finished. “I want the citizens of Gallia County to know that my staff and I are committed to working diligently every day to continue to protect you and your family with outside of the box style efforts like this one which are targeted to prevent our youth from being victimized. It is my hope that with this announcement we will bring a heightened level of awareness to the parents and caregivers throughout our county of the real threat that exists in the electronic world we live in today.
Operation Predator Child Sex Sting