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Central Florida lacrosse coach caught during ‘Operation Tor/Pedo,’ sheriff says

Seven people arrested in undercover investigation

Generic lacrosse stick (Image by Moonther Aga via Pixabay) (Pixabay)

VOLUSIA COUNTY, Fla. – Seven people were arrested as part of an undercover operation in Volusia County this month, according to the sheriff’s office.

In a release, deputies said the joint initiative — dubbed “Operation Tor/Pedo” — targeted those using the internet to “target, meet and exploit children.”

Investigators announced that the head of Volusia Lacrosse — identified as 38-year-old Robert James “Coach Rosco” Rece of DeLeon Springs — was one of these arrests.

Rece was taken into custody on Saturday after he traveled to a gas station in Deltona to meet up with a “child” he met online, deputies explained.

[RELATED: Deputies release footage of arrests during ‘Operation Tor/Pedo’]

Other suspects arrested in the operation were identified as follows:

  • Colton James Gregory, 19, of Eustis
  • Brandon Pierre Rutledge, 35, of Altamonte Springs
  • Logan Banks, 32, of Madison, Tennessee
  • Dion Kendal Jackson, 31, of Daytona Beach
  • Felix Mendez II, 28, of Port Orange
  • Temur Khujabekov, 31, of Orlando (on tourist visa from Uzbekistan)

All suspects face charges of traveling to meet a minor, using a computer/Internet service to solicit a minor, and unlawful use of a two-way communication device, the sheriff’s office noted.