Monday, June 20, 2011

Online Undercover Investigation Leads To Sex Offender’s Arrest

A Golden Gate man was arrested and charged after he tried to solicit sex from an undercover Collier County Sheriff’s Office detective who was posing as a child online.

Robert Butcher, 31, 3001 41st Terrace S.W., began an online chat with the undercover detective who was posing as a 14-year-old girl. During the chat detectives say Butcher made sexually explicit statements, solicited sex and sent lewd images of himself to the undercover deputy.

Butcher is a convicted sex offender and did not register the screen name or e-mail address used during the online chats with the undercover detective.

Butcher and the undercover deputy agreed to meet at a location in East Naples on Friday. Detectives said Butcher arrived at the location and was arrested.

Butcher is charged with traveling to meet after using a computer to lure a child, lewd communication to a minor via computer, two counts of obscene communication using a computer to lure a child and failure to register as a sex offender. All charges are felonies.