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By Mitchell Willetts
The Charlotte Observer
TEXARKANA, Texas — Three men, including an Arkansas police officer, were arrested in an underage prostitution sting, according to the Texarkana, Texas, Police Department.
The three men responded to a fake ad featuring an underage girl on a website commonly used for prostitution, the police department said in an Aug. 4 news release. An officer posed as the girl when the men reached out, and despite being aware that she was underage, they wanted to meet her for sex acts.
“When the guys showed up and knocked, they were shocked when several police officers answered the door instead of the young girl they were expecting,” the news release said.
All of the men were arrested on charges of online solicitation of a minor, including 31-year-old Telvin Wilson, a police officer with the Texarkana, Arkansas, Police Department, the release said.
Texarkana sits on the border between Texas and Arkansas, and each side has its own police department.
Wilson joined the Texarkana, Arkansas, police department in 2016, according to a February social media post by the department.
“I have always wanted to be that officer that is able to communicate with the public and be comfortable while doing so. I like that I stand in the gap and be the one that our young people can come and talk to,” the post read.
Wilson’s bond was set at $100,000, police said.
McClatchy News reached out to the Texarkana, Arkansas, Police Department for comment but did not immediately receive a response.
A 33-year-old was arrested on charges of online solicitation of a minor and delivery of marijuana, and his bond was set at $85,000, according to the release.
The third man, a 37-year-old, is facing charges of online solicitation of a minor, delivery of a controlled substance, resisting arrest, evading arrest, abandoning/endangering a child with intent to return and possession of a controlled substance, police said.
The department thanked the FBI, the Texas Department of Public Safety and the Bowie County Sheriff’s Office “for their invaluable help with this operation.”
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