Police arrest 13 from RI, MA on child solicitation charges in child exploitation sting

The Rhode Island State Police announce that members of the Rhode Island Internet Crimes Against Children (ICAC) Task Force have arrested thirteen subjects for child exploitation crimes during Operation Guardian.

The Rhode Island ICAC Task Force actively engages in investigative efforts to identify subjects involved in child exploitation-related activities. The Rhode Island ICAC Task Force Program is administered by the Rhode Island State Police and supports a national network of multi-agency, multi-jurisdictional task forces engaged in investigations, forensic examinations, and prosecutions related to Internet crimes against children and technology-facilitated child sexual exploitation. The Rhode Island ICAC Task Force is comprised of members of the Rhode Island State Police Computer Crimes Unit along with detectives from the Warwick Police Department, Cranston Police Department, Newport Police Department, East Providence Police Department, Pawtucket Police Department, Bristol Police Department, North Kingstown Police Department, Woonsocket Police Department, and Homeland Security Investigations.

The Rhode Island ICAC Task Force was assisted by members of the Rhode Island State Police Intelligence Unit, the Rhode Island State Police Uniform Division and the Providence Police Department during the execution of Operation Guardian. As a result, the following subjects were arrested on these various charges:

Jose Carrion, age 41, of 130 Jones Street, Apt. 1, Attleboro, MA was arrested on the charges of:
Indecent Solicitation of a Child
Possession of Cocaine

Kevin Cooney, age 27, of 24 Ann Marie Drive, Bellingham, MA was arrested on the charges of:
Indecent Solicitation of a Child
Electronically Disseminating Indecent Material to a Minor

Tomy Fitton, age 39, of 40 Mill Street, Pawtucket, RI was arrested on the charges of:
Indecent Solicitation of a Child
Electronically Disseminating Indecent Material to a Minor (5 counts)

Anthony Gomes, age 31, of 10 Main Street, Apt. 1, Brockton, MA was arrested on the charges of:
Indecent Solicitation of a Child
Electronically Disseminating Indecent Material to a Minor

Michael Johnson, age 50, of 177 S. Main Street, Templeton, MA was arrested on the charges of:
Indecent Solicitation of a Child
Electronically Disseminating Indecent Material to a Minor

James Jolly, age 41, of 47 Barden Hill Road, Middleborough, MA was arrested on the charge of:
Indecent Solicitation of a Child

Paul Kimata, age 41, of 685 Oak Street, Apt. 27, Brockton, MA was arrested on the charge of:
Indecent Solicitation of a Child

David King, age 37, of 32 Newton Avenue, Westerly, RI was arrested on the charges of:
Indecent Solicitation of a Child
Electronically Disseminating Indecent Material to a Minor

Yuhua Kong, age 29, of 127 DePasquale Avenue, Apt. 3, Providence, RI was arrested on the charge of:
Indecent Solicitation of a Child

Stephen Lomastro, age 57, of 166 Lakeside Avenue, Warwick, RI was arrested on the charge of:
Indecent Solicitation of a Child

Muhammad Malik, age 44, of 90 McPartland Way, East Greenwich, RI was arrested on the charge of:
Indecent Solicitation of a Child

Emmett Manna, age 37, of 46 Whittier Avenue, Apt. 2, Providence, RI was arrested on the charge of:
Indecent Solicitation of a Child

Manna Mahuri, age 41, of 32 Newport Avenue, North Kingstown, RI was arrested on the charge of:
Indecent Solicitation of a Child

Beginning on January 24th and ending in the early morning hours of January 26th, the undercover ICAC detectives utilized sixteen different social media applications and on-line classified ads to communicate with the suspects.

These suspects believed they were communicating with 13 to 15 year-old juveniles of all genders. The suspects arranged to meet these purported juveniles for various sexual acts at a pre-determined location. At the conclusion of the two days, thirteen individuals were arrested with several additional arrests possible.

Jose Carrion, Kevin Cooney, Anthony Gomes, Michael Johnson, James Jolly, Paul Kimata, David King, Yuhua Kong, Stephen Lomastro, Muhammad Malik, Emmett Manna and Manna Mahuri were all re-arraigned on January 29, 2020, at Sixth Division District Court before Associate Judge Houlihan. All subjects, other than Jose Carrion, received $5,000.00 personal recognizance with special bail conditions of limited internet use and no unsupervised contact with minors. Jose Carrion received $5,000.00 surety bail with the same special conditions.

Tomy Fitton was re-arraigned on January 27, 2020, at Sixth Division District Court before Associate Judge Houlihan and issued $50,000.00 surety bail with special bail conditions of limited internet use and no unsupervised contact with minors. Fitton was held as a Superior Court Probation Violator. He is also a sex offender in Massachusetts but his registration requirement expired in July 2019.
A person found guilty of Indecent Solicitation of a Child shall be imprisoned for not less than five years.

A person found guilty of Electronically Disseminating Indecent Material to a Minor shall be guilty of a felony and subject to imprisonment for not more than five (5) years, a fine of not more than five thousand dollars ($5,000.00), or both.

A person found guilty of possessing a controlled substance, classified in schedule I or II, shall be guilty of a felony and may be imprisoned for not more than thirty (30) years, or fined not more than one hundred thousand dollars ($100,000.00) nor less than three thousand dollars ($3,000.00), or both.