VOLUSIA COUNTY, Fla. — Two local men and 20 others were arrested in a child sex sting in Volusia County two weeks ago during Bike Week. The two men have posted bail and are no longer in custody.
The six-day operation, dubbed Operation PredaTour 2015, involved undercover officers posing as children on social networks and mobile apps and making contact with the suspects.
St. Augustine resident Brooks Mitchell, 53, and Jacksonville resident Glen Ross, 49, are two of the men accused of making advances on children they believed to be 14-years-old or younger.
Mitchell, who is listed as the owner of Jax Water Tours in St. Augustine, allegedly wrote, "I could get in big trouble if anyone ever found out," according to a charging affidavit.
Ross posted $45,000 bail, and Mitchell posted $65,000 bail due to a separate charge of transmitting a sex act to a minor by a computer.
All of the men, who were between ages 20-59, arrived at a 5-bedroom decoy house in Ormond Beach that had been wired with surveillance cameras. When the suspects arrived, they were greeted by officials with the Volusia County Sheriff's Office (VCSO) and arrested.
Several of the men were carrying condoms, according to the VCSO.
The 22 defendants are charged with traveling to meet a minor for sex were each charged with three felony offenses: traveling to seduce, solicit, lure or entice a child, use of a computer to seduce, solicit, lure or entice a child and unlawful use of a two-way communications device.
Below are the names and additional charges for the suspects:
Patrick Antoine, age 21 (DOB: 8/25/93), Daytona Beach
Alan Behnke, age 51 (DOB: 10/31/63), Ormond Beach
Vincent Cafarella, age 26 (DOB: 2/11/89), Palm Coast
- Possession of marijuana under 20 grams
Samuel Fanfan, age 27 (DOB: 10/6/87), Palm Coast
- Possession of marijuana under 20 grams
Andrew Gangale, age 46 (DOB: 5/15/46), Delray Beach
Carsten Haaland, age 21 (DOB: 4/9/93), Port Orange
Derick Hendrix, age 24 (DOB: 12/20/90), Port Orange
Steven Mandzuk, age 24 (DOB: 3/16/90), Daytona Beach
Michael Maurer, age 24 (DOB: 8/23/90), Daytona Beach
Levi McEntire, age 25 (DOB: 10/12/89), Waldron, AR
- Transmitting a sex act to a minor by a computer
Kevonta McMillian, age 21 (DOB: 8/24/93), Daytona Beach
Brooks Mitchell, age 53 (DOB: 4/20/61), St. Augustine
- Transmitting a sex act to a minor by a computer
Skylar Nedbalek, age 25 (DOB: 5/5/89), Daytona Beach
Dustin Notz, age 20 (DOB: 7/28/94), Edgewater
Aaron Pohler, age 23 (DOB: 3/25/91), Huntington, IN
Kyle Reaves, age 27 (DOB: 12/8/87), Astor
Chester Ringwald IV, age 25 (DOB: 6/18/89), Ormond Beach
Glen Ross, age 49 (DOB: 5/15/65), Jacksonville
Richard Sanger, age 59 (DOB: 1/26/56), New Smyrna Beach
Michael Smith, age 24 (DOB: 3/16/90), Theresa, WI
Benjamin Williams, age 39 (DOB: 10/11/75), Lacey, WA
- Two counts of transmitting a sex act to a minor by a computer
The VCSO had help from more than 20 agencies including the FBI and the Jacksonville Sheriff's Office.
An additional 19 arrests were made during the prostitution portion of the same operation.
