Leader Staff
Shawano County authorities Thursday arrested a 32-year-old Green Bay man in the latest computer sex sting operation here.
The man was arrested in Wescott about 7 p.m. after setting up a meeting with what he believed would be a 15-year-old girl.
He was instead greeted by Shawano County sheriff’s deputies. His vehicle was taken as evidence by the Sheriff’s Office, which will ask that it be forfeited as it was allegedly used to travel with the intent to commit a felony.
Charges have been referred to the district attorney’s office and are expected to be filed Monday.
Similar arrests have resulted in charges of using a computer to facilitate a sex crime or child exploitation.
Shawano County detectives and deputies are continuing their efforts to identify and apprehend people who would use today’s technologies to facilitate child sex crimes by seeking intimate encounters with underage persons online, the sheriff’s department said in a news release.
“We will continue our proactive efforts to protect the children of Shawano County by sending a clear message that if you travel here to target our youth, we may well be waiting,” Sheriff Adam Bieber said in the release.
“The reality is that these crimes are on the increase, people do not know the intent of potentially dangerous persons encountered online, and our preventative presence in the cyber community will be ongoing,” he said.
Internet safety courses are available through the sheriff’s office, and organizations are encouraged to contact the department if they would like a detailed presentation on what is truly occurring as technologies change, Bieber said.
The arrest brings to 13 the number of people busted in computer sex stings operations in Shawano County over the past two years.
There have been five regional operations since fall 2012, resulting in 84 arrests in multiple counties. Shawano County authorities have also conducted several independent operations.