Lorain County Prosecutor J.D. Tomlinson has announced the arrest of seven individuals as part of “Operation Watchdog”, an undercover sting led by the Ohio Internet Crimes Against Children Task Force.
The defendants, ages 24 to 53 – years-old, engaged in sexually explicit online conversations with undercover officers posing as children. The defendants expressed an interest in engaging in sexual activity with the purported children and/or disseminated images of their genitals during these online conversations.
Following these interactions, the individuals traveled to pre-arranged locations to engage in sexual activity with purported children. Upon arriving, they were arrested by law enforcement officers and transported to the Elyria Police Department and later to the Lorain County Jail.
