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TAMPA, Fla. (WFLA) — A year-long joint operation in Florida resulted in the arrests of 44 sex offenders who authorities said were caught with online dating profiles on platforms like Match.com.
According to officials, Match Group Americas — which owns and operates multiple online dating applications, including Match.com, Tinder, Hinge and Plenty of Fish — prohibits sexual offenders from using their sites.
The Florida Department of Law Enforcement (FDLE), Tampa Police Department, and U.S. Marshals Service all partnered with the online dating company to track down sex offenders who had unreported accounts.
All confirmed accounts were immediately terminated, and the 44 suspects were arrested. Authorities said the suspects included both sexual offenders and sexual predators, which Florida law differentiates by the severity of their crimes.
Those arrested during the operation include:
| Jose Aguirre, sexual offender | Michael Long, sexual offender |
| Charles Allen, sexual PREDATOR | Leonardo Lopez-Navarro, sexual offender |
| Donnell Armstead, sexual offender | Kristipher Mathis, sexual offender |
| Nicolas Bergin, sexual offender | Kirt Mclane, sexual offender |
| Marcus Bostic, sexual offender | Jeffrey Mentzer, sexual offender |
| Jack Bozeman, sexual offender | Gregory Miller, sexual PREDATOR |
| Donald Brown, sexual offender | Cheryl Vazquez, sexual PREDATOR |
| Christopher Burston, sexual offender | Jorge Nieto, sexual offender |
| David Coronel, sexual offender | Jacqueline Numata, sexual offender |
| Anna Cosenza, sexual offender | Stephen Olman, sexual PREDATOR |
| Gary Daughtry, sexual offender | Arthur Passeri, sexual offender |
| Jacob Doyle, sexual offender | Geremi Pierce, sexual offender |
| Isaac Edwards, sexual offender | Howard Renew, sexual offender |
| Gary Eichner, sexual offender | Salvador Rivera, sexual offender |
| Garry Gallagher, sexual offender | Anthony Rodriguez, sexual offender |
| Robert Gibson, sexual offender | Ian Rouse, sexual offender |
| Bernard Gold, sexual offender | Michael Rowland, sexual offender |
| Julius Halyard, sexual PREDATOR | Paul Shamonsky, sexual offender |
| Chad Hanson, sexual offender | Matthew Spedding, sexual offender |
| James Hill, sexual offender | William Stratman, sexual offender |
| Daimanion Jones, sexual PREDATOR | Guarionex Villate, sexual offender |
| Johnnie Lane, sexual offender | Bakeebakeem Whitfield, sexual offender |
Some of those arrested have been convicted of crimes like sexual battery of a child and lewdly fondling or assaulting a child.
