By Jeff Devine
These are always disturbing stories to report. Seven men have been taken into custody after a two-day undercover sting targeting individuals seeking sexual encounters with minors, according to the Dale County Sheriff’s Office.
Dale County Sheriff Mason Bynum said the operation, conducted over two nights, focused on identifying and arresting suspected child predators through online activity. The Houston County Sheriff’s Office, Dothan Police Department, the Alabama Law Enforcement Agency’s State Bureau of Investigation, and the FBI also assisted in the joint investigation.
Those arrested include:
Ryan Cotton, 32
Michael Wayne Hill, 64
William Lewis, 51
Willie Lee Patterson, 44
Daryl Earl Scott, 64
Zachary Hudson Taylor, 32
Doral Powell, 46
Each suspect faces a charge of Traveling to Meet a Child for an Unlawful Sex Act.
Sheriff Bynum explained that investigators created and posted online ads designed to attract individuals attempting to engage with minors. The suspects allegedly responded and traveled to what they believed was a meeting place with a child.
“They arrived at an undisclosed location expecting to meet an underage child, but instead encountered law enforcement officers,” Bynum said.
Bynum praised the teamwork among the multiple agencies involved, emphasizing the importance of such operations in protecting children from online predators.
*It is the general policy of the Dale County Chronicle to include the following statement in all news reports involving arrests: in the American criminal justice system, all arrested suspects are presumed innocent until proven guilty in a court of law.
Images of the seven suspects are from the Dale County Jail
