Osceola County Sheriff’s investigators, with the assistance of the Polk County Sheriff’s Office, arrested a man this week after he thought he was meeting a minor teenager for sex after online chats.
Jacob Alan Edmonds, 30, was arrested and charged with traveling to meet a minor for sex and use of computer to seduce, solicit or lure a child.
Back on March 12, detectives with the Osceola County Sheriff’s Office ICAC Unit (Internet Crimes Against Children) assisted their Polk County counterparts during an operation to locate online predators. During the operation, a suspect later identified as Edmonds began and continued a sexually explicit conversation with who he believed to be a 14-year-old child. This online conversation continued sporadically for weeks after the operation ended.
Then on Thursday, the conversation again turned sexual and Edmonds wished to meet the “child” in person to engage in unlawful sexual activity. Instead of meeting a child as intended, Edmonds was met by detectives and placed under arrest. He was cooperative with the investigation and later booked into the Osceola County Jail on no bond.
The Osceola County Sheriff’s Office is dedicated to serving our community, protecting our children from and increasing public safety. Anyone with information related to this case or any other similar incidents, please contact the Osceola County Sheriff’s Office at 407-348-2222 or Crimeline at 1-800-423-8477, where information leading to a felony arrest may be eligible for a reward of up to $1,000.
