27 men went to house to sexually abuse children, but it was a trap, Ohio official says

Twenty-seven men were arrested during a four-day undercover operation to expose adults trying to sexually abuse children, an Ohio prosecutor said Friday.

The men, ranging in age from 21 to 61, had “sexually explicit online conversations” with officers posing as children, according to a news release from the prosecutor’s office.

Each is accused of either expressing interest in sexually abusing children or sending images of their genitals during online conversations, the prosecutor’s office said.

After the online conversations, each of the men went to a vacant house in Cuyahoga County to meet what they thought were children for sex, according to the prosecutor’s office. Instead, they were met by law enforcement and arrested, then taken to the county jail.

Several of the men brought items including guns, condoms, sex toys, drugs and personal lubricants, the prosecutor’s office said.

Each of the men is charged with attempted unlawful sexual conduct with a minor, disseminating matter harmful to juveniles, importuning and possessing criminal tools.

The operation was led by Ohio Internet Crimes Against Children (ICAC) Task Force, which is run by the Cuyahoga County Prosecutor’s Office, and conducts investigations into the online exploitation of children.

This story was originally published August 30, 2020 at 9:40 AM with the headline "27 men went to house to sexually abuse children, but it was a trap, Ohio official says."