Former Boston Red Sox pitcher Austin Maddox has been arrested as part of an operation to catch child sexual predators.
The Jacksonville Sheriff’s Department in Florida said it worked with local, state and federal partners to identify and arrest 27 men for attempting to sexually exploit children online — one of those being Maddox.
“Austin Maddox, a former Red Sox MLB player, traveled with the intent of engaging in sexual activity with a 14-year-old child,” Sheriff T.K. Waters said in a press conference.
Also among those arrested was a public school maintenance worker and a sergeant of the Army National Guard, according to police.
The men thought they had been chatting with underage children online, but instead had been communicating with detectives.
The arrests included 24 men who agreed to meet who they thought were minors for sex at a specified location. They were immediately taken into custody upon arrival. The other three were arrested as part of follow-up investigations.
Video released by police showed Maddox getting pummeled to the ground by police when he arrived at a residence. He “resisted arrest until our K-9 got involved,” police said in the video.
The men arrested are between the ages of 19 and 69 years old.
They were arrested on charges that included coercing sexual activity for human trafficking, which is a first-degree felony, among other things, Waters said.
While he said parents are not to blame, Waters issued a word of caution to parents who can get wrapped up in busy lives and not realize what their children are getting into.
“It’s very important for us to set as many protections on our computers, and to pay attention to what our kids are doing. If you don’t, sometimes these kinds of things happen, and we do not want our kids being victims to these predators,” Waters said.
Police said they will continue conducting such operations to stop child predators.
