10 arrested in Pierce County online child sex sting

Published 1:24 pm Wednesday, December 23, 2015

OLYMPIA, Wash. — State authorities say they have arrested 10 people who made arrangements with undercover detectives to have sex with children in Pierce County.

The Olympian reports that during the two-week undercover operation that ended Saturday detectives posed online as underage girls or parents selling their children for sex. Nine men and one woman were arrested after they showed up to meetings they had arranged with detectives.

The Washington State Patrol’s Missing and Exploited Children Task Force oversaw the operation. Several agencies participated in the sting, including the FBI, Tacoma police and the State Attorney’s Office.

Nine of the 10 people arrested have been charged. They face charges of attempted child rape and attempted commercial sex abuse of a minor.