Tarpon Springs, Fla. (970 WFLA)- Detectives from the Tarpon Springs Police Department have arrested 25 year old Charles Eric Dudley, of Palm Harbor, who has been under investigation for the last 8 months in connection to several online sex crimes with minor female children in the Tarpon Springs area.
Dudley has been arrested on 5 counts of Transmission of Harmful Materials to a Minor (3rd Degree Felony).
An investigation began in August 2016, after the concerned mother of a 13 year old female child filed an initial report.
Dudley later made contact with an undercover Detective posing to be a 13 year old female child, and subsequently sent 5 explicit nude photographs, claiming to be of him. Dudley was aware the undercover child profile age was 13, and on several occasions advised he preferred girls of that age.
.After Dudley's arrest, he provided Detectives with a full post Miranda confession. Dudley advised he created a faux Facebook account and sent explicit nude photographs to whom he thought was a 13 year old child.
On March 13th, Dudley advised the undercover Detective, who he thought was a 13 year old, that he wanted to meet , in person. He then traveled to Anderson Park, in Tarpon Springs with a minor child in his custody, and was apprehended and arrested.
Although Dudley did not arrange to have sex with the undercover Detective, posing to be a 13 year old child on the date of his arrest, he had done so on prior occasions, later cancelling the pre-arranged meetings. Dudley claimed, although he previously arranged to, he would have never "actually crossed the line" and had sex with a child.
Throughout a lengthy investigation, it has been discovered that Dudley has possibly targeted multiple female juveniles throughout Pinellas and Pasco counties. If you have any information regarding Dudley as it pertains to this investigation or other similar allegations, please contact Det. Scarpati at the Tarpon Springs Police Department at (727)939-4499.
Photo Credit: Pasco Sheriff's Office