PORT ORCHARD — Nineteen suspected sexual predators — including 12 from Kitsap County — who targeted children in the county were arrested during a five-day operation dubbed “Net Nanny” in July by the Washington State Patrol and several local, state and federal law enforcement agencies.
The operation that took place from July 25 to 29 was the 16th spearheaded by the WSP’s Missing and Exploited Children Task Force (MECTF). Since the origin of the operation in August 2015, MECTF has arrested 271 individuals and rescued at least 31 children across Washington state.
The primary crimes that were investigated in the operation were first- and second-degree attempted rape of a child; commercial sexual abuse of a minor and communication with a minor for immoral purposes.
The 12 Kitsap County individuals arrested were: Kendall N. Spann, 25, Bradley D. Petrie, 21, Timmothy A. Hoskinson, 49, J. Tangonan, 24, Noah A. LaFountaine, 22, Travan T. Tagaloa, 33, B.A. Youngblood Simpson, 26, and Jimmy S. Howard, 46, all of Bremerton; Owen T. Shreve, 27, Poulsbo; Jordan M. Kaufman, 24, and David Bagby, 39, both of Port Orchard; and Zachary M. Drouin, 26, of Olalla.
“The number of arrests made during this operation is extremely disappointing,” said Bremerton Police Department Chief Jim Burchett.
“I hope that someday we conduct an operation like this and no one responds. Until that time, we will continue taking proactive steps to keep our kids safe, including partnering with the Washington State Patrol Missing and Exploited Children Task Force in the outstanding work they do in protecting children from predators.”
According to WSP officials, from July 25-29, undercover law enforcement officers used various websites on the internet and phone apps to communicate with people interested in having sex with children. The operation generated hundreds of responses, said Sgt. Carlos Rodriguez of the Washington State Patrol.
The would-be suspected perpetrators who were arrested during the operation traveled to meet with the undercover detectives posing as underage girls and boys with the intent to engage in sexual activity with children as young as 6 years old.
Kitsap County Sheriff Gary Simpson said his office will continue to target suspected individuals who engage in the illegal activity.
“Working as part of the WSP task force optimizes our investigative and enforcement capabilities ten-fold, which assists us in holding these perpetrators accountable for their actions.”
The effort involved more than 60 law enforcement officers, agents and staff, including those from the FBI’s South Sound Child Exploitation Task Force, Bremerton Police Department, Kitsap County Sheriff’s Office, WSP and the Kitsap County Prosecutor’s Office.
