Three adult men were arrested and charged for solicitation of sex with minor children after a joint-sting operation at a hotel in Longmont. The operation was conducted by the District Attorney’s Office Human Trafficking Unit, the Department of Homeland Security, Colorado Bureau of Investigation, Longmont Police Department, Aurora Police Department, and the Boulder County Computer Forensics Lab.
The sting was dubbed “The Human Trafficking Predator Operation,” in which the men were arrested for responding to “commercial sex advertisements pertaining to illegal activities/violations with minor children, ages 12 and 14.” The suspects who were arrested include Jesse Spink, 39, Diego Lopez-Jiminez, 28, and Christian Quinones, 36. Spink and Lopez-Jiminez were booked in the Boulder County Jail on Friday night and are still in custody. Quinones was booked on Thursday night and has since bonded out.
District Attorney Michael Dougherty said that the purpose of the operation was “to stop people who were willing, and attempted, to exploit children.”
“Our number one priority is the safety of our citizens and those of our neighboring communities,” Longmont Police Assistant Chief David Moore said in the press release. “Working jointly with our partner agencies to protect our children, the most vulnerable in our community, is our priority. I’d like to thank the efforts of our partners and our dedicated police detectives, officers and staff who worked tirelessly to investigate and apprehend the suspects before they could victimize anyone.”
The men are not currently registered as sex offenders in Colorado. Child sex solicitation is a class 3 felony punishable by four to 12 years in prison, fines between $3,000 and $750,000, and convicted perpetrators are required to register as a sex offender.
A similar sting operation was conducted in 2015 by Homeland Security with assistance from the Weld County Sheriff’s Office and the Colorado State Patrol. Five arrests were made in that sting operation and Abdeslam Akdi is the only one registered as a sex offender in Colorado. The WCSO put a warrant out for his arrest for failing to register.
“This operation sends a clear message — human trafficking has no place in our communities, and we will relentlessly pursue those who seek to exploit others,” Steve Cagen, a Homeland Security Investigations Denver Special Agent in Charge, said. “My deepest gratitude to every officer, investigator, and partner who made this mission a success."
