VOLUSIA COUNTY, Fla. – Volusia County deputies say they arrested 11 men who were speaking with an undercover agent posing as a 14-year-old child online and tried to meet with the supposed teen for sex.
Sheriff Mike Chitwood said Operation Deviant Desire took place during a five-day period with the help of several local law enforcement agencies.
The suspects are accused of exchanging sexual messages with an undercover officer then eventually agreeing to meet the supposed teen at a Wawa. When the men arrived at the gas station, they were arrested.
Chitwood said all the men involved knew they were supposed to be meeting an underage teen.
"It makes you want to throw up. It really makes you want to physically get ill to listen to what these guys are requesting a 14-year-old perform on them and what they want to perform on a 14-year-old," Chitwood said.
A gun, lubricant, condoms and sex toys were seized from the suspects, according to the sheriff.
He said the arrests should serve as a warning to parents to monitor what their children are doing online.
"The message to go home to the parents is: The internet is a dangerous place," Chitwood said.