Child Sex Sting Leads To Multiple Arrests: Sheriff's Office

FORSYTH COUNTY, GA — More than 20 people ranging in age from 19 to 65 recently traveled to Forsyth County hoping to have sex with a child. Some of those people are already registered sex offenders. One person was a current state prisoner in the Department of Corrections system using an illegally possessed phone smuggled inside the prison. Two more of those people traveled from out of state and brought along a 2-year-old child for their possible encounter.

All of them were arrested recently during a multi-agency operation called "Just Cause."

"If you want to prey on Forsyth County's children, you picked the wrong county," Forsyth Sheriff Ron Freeman said. "You picked the wrong state if you think you're going to prey on Georgia's children. We are one of many operations that target those who want to prey on children. These people clearly knew they were arranging sexual encounters with what they believed to be very young children. They are looking to victimize our children. Each of them are horrific. As a human being and a father, I have a tough time comprehending that."

As a result of a proactive undercover investigation coordinated by the Forsyth County Sheriff’s Office, High Technology Crime Unit, 24 people were arrested over a four-day period beginning Thursday, Sept. 5. Those arrested were charged with O.C.G.A. 16-12-100.2, Computer or Electronic Pornography and Child Exploitation Prevention Act of 2007 and / or O.C.G.A 16-5-46, Trafficking of Persons for Labor or Sexual Servitude. Additional charges may be forthcoming.

The following people were arrested and charged in Forsyth County as part of Operation Just Cause:

• Robert Harley Martin, W/M, Dahlonega, GA, 38 years of age, truck driver
• Erik Delgado, W/M, Gainesville, GA, 26 years of age, sales associate
• Alan Thomas Bryant, W/M, Murrayville, GA, 40 years of age, unemployed
• Kyle Alexander Williams, B/M, Stone Mountain, GA, 32 years of age, landscaper
• Roger Kyle Nicholson; W/M, Gainesville, GA, 44 years of age, unemployed
• Jacob Perry Yeamans, W/M, Madison, Wisconsin, 61 years of age
• Rene Mauricio Posada; W/M; Marietta, GA, 29 years of age, sales manager
• Jackson Cain Butler, W/M, Calhoun, GA, 20 years of age, sales
• John Andrew Odell, W/M, Cumming, GA, 40 years of age, truck driver
• Michael Keith Coker, W/M; Augusta State Prison, 29 years of age, unemployed
• Richard Edward Hazelwood, B/M, Roswell, GA 49 years of age, drug representative
• Johnathon Dale Butler, W/M, Palmall, TN, 25 years of age, unemployed
• Mackenzi Faye Stinson, W/F, Palmall, TN, 19 years of age, sales associate
• Christopher Scott Taylor, W/M, Cumming, GA, 29 years of age, construction
• Joseph Ryan Lisnock, W/M, Gainesville, GA, 22 years of age, Landscaper
• Dylan Blair Nessmith, W/M, Johns Creek, GA, 23 years of age, mechanic
• Austin Wayne Rhodes, W/M, Alpharetta, GA, 22 years of age, Mechanic
• Daniel Dennis Rogan. W/M, Witchita, KS, 47 years of age, Vehicle Transporter
• Jason Lee McIntyre, W/M, Gainesville, GA, 35 years of age, Supervisor
• Gavin Austen Peppers, W/M, Bowman, GA, 21 years of age, hotel clerk
• Jimmy Webster Roy, W/M, Gainesville, GA, 21 years of age, mover
• Anthony Christian Ceja, W/M, Lawrenceville, GA, 23 years of age, laborer
• Steven Charles Vinnenberg W/M, Cumming, Ga. 65 years of age

Operation Just Cause was a four-day proactive effort centered in Cumming, Georgia. The operation took several months of planning, the Forsyth County Sheriff's Office said.

The arrestees, ranging in age from 19 to 65, traveled from areas around North Georgia, and other states, with the intent to meet a child for sex. Two people that were arrested were already registered sex offenders. One person arrested was in possession of suspected illegal drugs. Thirty-one mobile phones were seized as evidence during the operation. One person identified in the operation was a current state prisoner in the Department of Corrections system using an illegally possessed phone smuggled inside the prison.

The goal of Operation Just Cause was to arrest persons who communicate with children online and then travel to meet them for the purpose of having sex. Additionally, the operation targeted those that are willing to exploit children by purchasing sex with a minor. On-line child predators visit chat rooms and websites on the internet, find children, begin conversations with them, introduce sexual content and arrange a meeting with the children for the purpose of having sex.

Over the course of the operation, a number of cases were established that met the threshold for arrest. Twenty-four of those cases were concluded with arrests.

During the multi-day operation, investigators had numerous exchanges with subjects on various social media or internet platforms. Many of those were exchanges in which the subject initiated contact with whom they believed to be a minor and directed the conversation toward sex. In some of those cases, the subject introduced obscene or lewd content, often exposing the minor (undercover) to pornography or requesting the child take nude or pornographic images for them.

Although some websites promote themselves as being for “adults-only” it is not uncommon for law enforcement to work cases in which children access these sites, establish profiles claiming to be older, and then find themselves vulnerable to victimization, harassment, blackmail, or assault, the Sheriff's Office said.

Several subjects were identified as communicating simultaneously with multiple investigators posing as minors. Such activity confirms what investigators uncover conducting these types of investigations: that many predators specifically seek out minors on such websites to groom them as potential victims for sexual contact, the department said.

Along with the Forsyth County Sheriff’s Office, 13 additional law enforcement agencies participated in Operation Just Cause as members of the Georgia ICAC Task Force. These agencies were:

• Johns Creek-Alpharetta-Forsyth County Drug Task Force
• Alpharetta Police Department
• Cherokee County Sheriff’s Office
• Coweta County Sheriff’s Office
• Floyd County Police Department
• GBI
• GBI-Georgia Information Sharing and Analysis Center
• Gwinnett County Police Department
• Hall County Sheriff’s Office
• Johns Creek Police Department
• Lilburn Police Department
• Roswell Police Department
• United States Department of Homeland Security

The Georgia ICAC Task Force consists of 230+ local, state, and federal law enforcement agencies, other related criminal justice agencies and prosecutor’s offices. The mission of the ICAC Task Force, created by the U. S. Department of Justice and managed and operated by the GBI in Georgia, is to assist state and local law enforcement agencies in developing an effective response to cyber enticement and child pornography cases. This support encompasses forensic and investigative components, training and technical assistance, victim services, prevention and community education.

The ICAC Program was developed in response to the increasing number of children and teenagers using the internet, the proliferation of child pornography, and the heightened online activity by predators searching for unsupervised contact with underage victims.

By helping state and local law enforcement agencies develop effective and sustainable responses to online child victimization and child pornography, the ICAC program delivers national resources at the local level.

Arrests made by the Georgia ICAC Task Force have been steadily increasing over the last three years, the Sheriff's Office said.

In 2014, the GA ICAC Task Force made 196 arrests. The Georgia ICAC Task Force made 244 arrests in 2015, and in 2016, the Georgia ICAC Task Force made 340 arrests. In 2017, The Georgia ICAC Task Force made 350 arrests. The Georgia ICAC Task Force has made over 2,000 arrests since its inception in 2002.

The Forsyth County Sheriff's Office held a press conference Thursday, Sept. 12 to discuss the operation.