Teachers, students, businessmen and tourists were nabbed in a weeklong operation targeting child sex predators in Florida.
Fifty suspects were rounded up in "Operation Cardea" -- named after the Roman goddess who protected homes -- which ended on Monday, WKMG reports. Officers posed as teens or parents willing to sell their children online and lured the suspects to a posh home in Oviedo, about 20 miles from Orlando.
The suspects, all men, ranged in age from 19 to 60, and included Jorge Ferreira, a science teacher at Ocoee Middle School and David Miller, an interpreter for deaf children at Lake Sybelia Elementary School, CBS News reports.
Footage released by authorities shows the men being thrown against a wall at the home before their arrests. At least one suspect led police on a foot chase in the front yard before he was taken down.
One of the men was a Florida high school English teacher who allegedly arrived at the decoy home with condoms in his pocket, expecting to have sex with a 14-year-old girl, Fox 40 reports. He reportedly sent photos to undercover agents before showing up and noted that he had a lot to lose if caught.
All of the suspects were charged with traveling to meet a minor for sex and soliciting a minor for sex. If released on bond, they will be prohibited from having contact with children.
The multi-agency investigation was spearheaded by the Seminole County Sheriff's office.
It's not the only mass sting operation surrounding Central Florida this week. Cops arrested 78 more people as part of a prostitution sting that collared married people, a microbiologist and a police academy trainee in a slew of charges. Their mugshots are below.
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