They made plans to have sex with teens at a Broward hotel. They’re in jail
Seven men were arrested in Broward County on charges of trying to meet up with teenagers they met online for sex — unaware the person on the other end of the screen was an undercover law enforcement officer.
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On Thursday, the Broward Sheriff’s Office said the arrests in late June were part of “Operation Red Card,” a human trafficking enforcement campaign launched during the FIFA World Cup.
“In soccer, a red card ejects a player from the match for a serious violation. Through this operation, law enforcement delivered that same message to human traffickers. They are not welcome here,” a BSO news release.
The following men were jailed on charges that include human trafficking of a minor, traveling to meet a minor, solicitation of a minor, possession of MDMA and violation of probation:
- Grant Werner, 25, of Dania Beach
- Luis Paredes Guerra, 26, of Hollywood
- Marco Ramirez Linares, 22, of Hollywood
- Luis Chifundo Ortiz, 23, of Pembroke Pines
- Ryan Walker, 50, of Fort Lauderdale
- Zubaer Ashar, 27, of Palm Beach County
- Kyle Rosenthal, 32, of Coral Springs
Investigators set up multiple ways of luring the men to meet up with teenage boys or girls for sex including setting up fake advertisements and using dating and “hookup” sites such as Grindr, MegaPersonals, Jack’d and Hush, according to the men’s arrest affidavits. Undercover detectives also used WhatsApp to message the men.
The operations were conducted out of the Cambria Hotel in Dania Beach, 141 SW 19th Ct.
Deputies say the men would make plans to meet up with a teen at the hotel, where deputies would be waiting to make an arrest.
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Paredes Guerra believed he was chatting with a 15-year-old boy when he agreed to pay $20 for sex and drove about six miles from his home to the hotel, his arrest affidavit reads. According to deputies, he later admitted to the allegations.
Werner allegedly joked in one message to someone he believed was a 15-year-old boy that he could be charged as a pedophile. “Haha,” he wrote, according to his arrest affidavit.
Linares was found carrying $120 that BSO investigators say he intended to use to pay a 15-year-old girl for sex. Deputies also said he was in possession of one gram of MDMA, a synthetic psychedelic drug.
“Remember you’re not legal,” Ortiz wrote in one message he thought was for a 15-year-old boy. Deputies say he confessed.
Walker drove 10 miles from his home in Oakland Park to meet up with a teen.
Ashar said he was 17 and asked the “cousin” of a 15-year-old girl whether she was “on birth control,” according to his arrest affidavit. He was offering to pay the girl $150 for sex.
Rosenthal said he was attempting to meet up with a girl who he thought was 14 years old, per his arrest affidavit.
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