The dean of a Georgia college was among 14 people who were arrested for child sex crimes over a 4-day span earlier this month.
The Georgia Bureau of Investigation (GBI) says it arrested 14 people in a sting operation named "Operation Broken Arrow" between Feb. 6 and Feb. 10. Among those arrested was 44-year-old Keith Walters.
According to the WSB-TV, Walters is the dean of the College of Science and Mathematics at Valdosta State University in Valdosta, Georgia. The Atlanta Constitution Journal reports that the university placed Walters on "immediate administrative leave" pending the outcome of the investigation.
According to the GBI, the 14 people who were arrested in the sting believed they were traveling to meet a child for sex. The GBI says that investigators exchanged messages on social media and other internet platforms with 120 people, and in some cases the exchanges the conversation turned sexual. According to the GBI, many suspects either sent or asked for nude photographs from what they thought was a minor.
Forty of the exchanges met the "threshold for arrest."
The GBI said "half" of the exchanges took place on websites used for "dating, socializing, or even websites used for classified advertisements."
Sixteen law enforcement agencies took part in the sting operation.
In addition to Walters, the 13 other people charged in the operation were Dave Vincent Almon, 43; Billy Stephen Carter, 57; Eric Bernard Copeland; Walter Lee Curry, 33; Jamian Hogan, 34; John Henry Hursey, 45; Eugene Andega Mainah, 35; Keith Morrison, 43; Wyman Rene Phillips, 36; Wilford Sermons, 28; Josue Trejo, 31; Bronson Jamari D. Tripp, 24; and Justin Na'eem Warren, 24.