During the months of June and July, Lincoln City Police Officers conducted two separate online child-luring investigations.
The first investigation began after officers received a complaint regarding an adult male attempting to initiate sexual contact with a 16-year-old juvenile. During the case investigation, probable cause was developed and on June 26, 2023, officers arrested 34-year–old Ceotis Rhodes of Lincoln City, charging him with the crimes of Luring a Minor and Attempted Sexual Abuse in the second degree. He was taken into custody and transported to the Lincoln County Jail where he was lodged on the listed charges. His bail was set at $200,000.
The second investigation involved officers posing as an underage child on various social media platforms. The undercover officers went online and were subsequently contacted by adults who offered to meet for sex with a person they believed to be a minor. When these adults arrived at an undisclosed public location to meet up with the minor, they instead were contacted by law enforcement and arrested.
On July 6, 2023, 32-year-old Daniel Wilson of Tacoma, Wash. traveled to the Lincoln City area to meet with a person he believed was a 15-year-old juvenile. When Wilson arrived at the agreed undisclosed location, he was arrested and charged with the crimes of Luring a Minor, Online Sexual Corruption of a Child in the first degree, Attempted Rape III, and Attempted Sodomy III. He was subsequently transported to, and lodged at, the Lincoln County Jail. His bail was set at $250,000.
The Lincoln City Police would like to encourage parents to monitor their children’s social media activity and discuss with them the possible dangers of communicating with strangers online.