In Citrus County, Florida, a significant operation led to the arrest of 16 individuals in a sting targeting online predators. This initiative, orchestrated by the Citrus County Sheriff’s Office High Tech Crimes Unit, was supported by a coalition of various law enforcement agencies.

Named Operation Boogeyman, the mission focused on identifying and apprehending cyber predators seeking to exploit minors for sexual purposes.

Collaborating with the Citrus County School Board Police, the U.S. Secret Service, and several other state and local law enforcement departments, the effort represented a robust example of inter-agency cooperation.

Throughout the operation, officers went undercover on numerous websites and social media platforms, posing as minors. These predators initiated contact, exchanging explicit messages and images, under the false belief they were communicating with children.

Police noted that some suspects even went as far as planning to meet the purported minors for unlawful sexual encounters.

Upon completing Operation Boogeyman, the Citrus County Sheriff’s Office confirmed the arrests, highlighting that among those apprehended were convicted sex offenders accused of breaching the terms of their probation or parole.

“These predators knew they were targeting children and still chose to pursue
them. Operation Boogeyman’ exposed how real and dangerous these threats are in
the digital world,” said Sheriff David Vincent. “I couldn’t be prouder of the
men and women in our High Tech Crimes Unit and the partner agencies who worked
tirelessly to bring these predators to justice.”