BEXAR COUNTY, Texas – A 59-year-old man was arrested for attempting to solicit minors after he reached out to undercover investigators, according to the Bexar County Sheriff’s Office.
Lawrence Edward Paul was charged with online solicitation of a minor, a third-degree felony, Bexar County Sheriff Javier Salazar said Monday.
The investigation began weeks ago and was led by BCSO’s Human Exploitation Unit with assistance from a U.S. Secret Service agent.
Salazar said the agent initially posed as a 15-year-old girl and began communicating with Paul online, who used the name “cheer dad.”
Conversations allegedly turned explicit “very quickly,” and Paul propositioned who he thought was a female minor, Salazar said.
The sheriff said Paul later engaged in explicit conversations with a second undercover investigator who was posed as a 17-year-old girl.
On Monday, Paul believed he was meeting up with the 17-year-old at Ingram Park Mall to purchase clothing for her, Salazar said. At the mall, authorities took Paul into custody.
While deputies were at Paul’s residence, a person approached them and reported they had contact with him, Salazar said. Investigators said the person is an adult, and an offense report was filed.
Salazar said Paul did not have a criminal history.
“But to even fantasize about that sort of thing with children at all ... tells you that this is a very sick individual that we’re dealing with,” Salazar said. “And so it’s extremely disturbing. The whole case is extremely disturbing.”
The sheriff’s office believes there are more victims. Salazar urged anyone with information or who believes they had contact with Paul to contact BCSO at 210-335-6000.
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