SANTA ROSA COUNTY, Fla. (WKRG) — An undercover investigation in Northwest Florida led to the arrests of eight men accused of meeting with an underage girl.
According to Santa Rosa County Sheriff Bob Johnson, the men thought they were on their way to meet a 14-year-old girl. Instead, the men were met by officers.
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The Santa Rosa County Sheriff's Office conducted the operation from August 20 to 23, with assistance from the Florida Department of Law Enforcement, the Federal Bureau of Investigations, the Escambia County Sheriff's Office, the Naval Criminal Investigative Service and the Air Force Office of Special Operations.
The sheriff's office said deputies and officers posed as children on popular social media and chat applications. They said undercover officers identified themselves as minors and the suspects sent explicit messages, some of which included photos or videos.
According to the sheriff's office, the suspects each arranged to meet with individuals they believed were minors for the purpose of engaging in illegal activity.
They were arrested upon arrival.
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The sheriff arrested these eight men:
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60-year-old Shawn Michael Reinhard from Shalima
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60-year-old Lloyd Ashley Resureccion of Fort Walton Beach
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19-year-old Aiden Christopher Harris from Milton
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Andrew Scott Roach, 31, of Bay Minette
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25-year-old Cameron Joel Neely-Dane of Pace
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20-year-old Deevon Keeshawn Henry from Pensacola
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26-year-old Kam'ron Pierre Walker of Fort Walton Beach
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Matthew John Short, 27, of Pensacola
The men face a total of 27 felony charges ranging from obscene communication to weapons offenses. Sheriff Johnson said Walker and Reinhard showed up with weapons.
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“They just go to certain websites and they're harassed by individuals,” Johnson said. “They have pictures that they post and these guys are attracted to underage females and this is what they do.”
Sheriff Bob Johnson urges parents to check their child's phone.
“Please check their cell phones and their accounts because there are people like this coming at them,” Johnson said. “Make no mistake, if they met a 14-year-old girl, they were going to do something bad.”
According to the sheriff's office, 11 additional suspects have been charged with various crimes related to their online communications with minors.
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