MARION COUNTY, Fla. – Thirty-three men were arrested as part of an undercover sting operation in Marion County that targeted online sex predators, according to the sheriff’s office.
Sheriff Billy Woods detailed the arrests Tuesday during a news conference.
The sheriff’s office said law enforcement officers posing as children online were contacted by multiple men seeking sex.
“During the online interactions, these men engaged in sexually explicit conversations and graphically described the sexual acts they hoped to perform with children,” the sheriff’s office said.
According to the sheriff’s office, some of the men from outside of Florida traveled to meet up with the presumed children.
“It always turns our stomachs to find individuals out there that are trying to prey on children here in Marion County ... Parents, in just one afternoon of this operation we arrested nine people. Nine people that traveled to meet with a child for sex. Your children are their prey. Know what your child is doing on social media and online gaming,” Woods said.
Deputies seized guns, drugs, cash and vehicles from the suspects.
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