Tim Ryan tryan@wolfrivermedia.com
Three men, including one from Clintonville, were arrested on computer sex crime charges in the last sting operation conducted by the Shawano County Sheriff’s Department earlier this month.
Joshua M. Lapp, 32, of Clintonville; Troy M. Galston, 47, of Madison; and Daniel I. Fulton, 39, of Green Bay, are all facing felony charges of using a computer to facilitate a child sex crime.
Lapp and Galston are also charged with child enticement, and Galston faces an additional two counts of causing a child to view sexual activity.
The arrests came as a result of a sting operation in which sheriff’s detectives posted ads on the internet posing as a 15-year-old girl.
The men responded and exchanged texts and emails with the supposed child that became sexually graphic in nature.
In Galston’s case, he also sent images of his genitalia, according to the criminal complaint.
A sexual rendezvous was eventually set up and the men were arrested when they arrived.
The sting operation came on the heels of two other cases in which accused predators had contacted actual children on the internet.
In one of those, James A. Huskisson, 45, came all the way from New York intending to have sex with a 15-year-old girl.
Authorities were tipped off to the internet communication and continued the exchanges with Huskisson, who has since been charged in federal court with with child exploitation and coercion to engage in sexual activity.
In the other case, Robert A. Thompson, 24, of New London, was arrested after having had sexual contact with a 15-year-old girl.
He was charged with using a computer to facilitate a child sex crime, two counts of sexual assault of a child, and exposing his genitals to a child.
Sheriff’s Detective Sgt. Gordon Kowaleski said the incidents involving real children underscore the importance of the sex sting operations that are aimed at proactively getting predators off the streets.
“If anybody wonders why we run these operations, this is exactly why we do this,” he said.
Each of the defendants arrested in the latest sting operation face a maximum 40 years in prison and $100,000 fine on the charge of using a computer to facilitate a sex crime.
Lapp waived his preliminary hearing Tuesday and was scheduled for arraignment on Jan. 22. He is free after posting a $5,000 cash bond.
Galston is still being held on a $5,000 cash bond and is scheduled for an adjourned initial court appearance Tuesday.
Fulton posted a $5,000 cash bond and is also scheduled for an adjourned initial appearance Tuesday.