The Aurora Police Department's Special Victims Section carried out an undercover sting that led to the arrest of 13 men who responded to online ads posing as minors. Officers who posed as children arranged in-person meetings; most suspects traveled to the meetings and brought agreed cash. Charges include internet luring of a child, attempted sexual assault of a minor and solicitation of child prostitution. The arrests were made under APD's SAFE initiative after Colorado strengthened penalties for online luring and continues legislative debates over tougher trafficking penalties.
Undercover Aurora Sting Nets 13 Arrests in Child-Exploitation Probe
Image Credit: CBS/Aurora Police Department
The Aurora Police Department's Special Victims Section concluded a targeted undercover operation that resulted in the arrest of 13 men who responded to online ads posing as minors offering paid sexual services.
Operation Details
Undercover officers created online profiles representing minors and arranged in-person meetings with adults who replied to the ads. Several suspects traveled from across the Denver metropolitan area to the agreed meeting locations, and most arrived carrying the cash discussed in the online chats.
According to the APD, officers recovered sexual devices from seven suspects; one man purchased alcohol at the meeting, another had illegal drugs, and one individual arrived armed. Two of those arrested were already registered sex offenders.
"Without proactive investigations like this, much of this criminal activity would remain hidden from the public and, more importantly, these individuals could have gone on to victimize a child,"
Lt. Seth Robertson, who oversees the APD's Special Victims Section, said.
Charges, Initiative And State Law
Many of the men face felony counts including internet luring of a child, attempted sexual assault of a minor, solicitation of child prostitution and related offenses. The arrests were made as part of APD's Stopping Adults From Exploiting (SAFE) initiative, a proactive effort aimed at identifying and stopping adults who seek to sexually exploit children online.
SAFE was launched after Colorado enacted Senate Bill 26-15, which raised the penalty for internet luring of a child for commercial sexual activity from a Class 5 felony to a Class 3 felony. Under Colorado law, people convicted of crimes related to child prostitution must serve at least 364 days in jail if they are offered probation, and convicted offenders must face at least the minimum of the presumptive sentencing range for the level of the offense.
This year the state Senate also approved Senate Bill 26-11, which permits courts to impose probation terms for sex offenders ranging from 10 to 20 years. Advocacy groups Protect Kids Colorado and Advance Colorado are sponsoring Proposition 133, a ballot measure that would elevate human trafficking to a Level 1 felony and require life sentences for people convicted of trafficking minors if approved by voters.
Context
Officials note that reported human trafficking in Colorado has increased in recent years. In 2023 the state ranked 10th nationwide in reported sex trafficking incidents, with Adams County reporting the highest number of occurrences in the state followed by Denver, Boulder and El Paso counties.
Suspects Identified
The APD identified those arrested as: Jeffrey Lutsk, Kristopher Dominguez, Frank Herman, Jesus Cedillo, Jonathan Kranich, Thomas Wohlman, Devar Lewis, Danny Davis, Samuel Wahlgren, Joshua Tarver, Fermin Rivera-Garcia, Robert Titus and Hikmat Hikmat.
The investigation remains active, and additional details or charges may be announced as the cases proceed through the legal system.
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