By Nicholas Pugliese, Trenton Bureau, North Jersey .com
Twenty-four men, including a Howell Township police officer, have been arrested for allegedly using social media to try to arrange meetings with underage boys and girls for sexual activity, the Attorney General’s Office announced Tuesday.
Richard Conte, 47, a police sergeant in the Monmouth County town, was among a nurse, firefighter, DPW worker and others who traveled to a meet-up point expecting to find a 14- or 15-year-old boy or girl, Attorney General Gurbir Grewal said at a news conference.
Instead, the men were confronted by dozens of law enforcement officers and charged with second-degree luring, among other crimes.
(Authorities on Tuesday announced the arrests of two dozen men nabbed in a child predator sting in New Jersey, and the suspects include a nurse, a firefighter and a police sergeant. Courtesy of Eyewitness News ABC7NY and YouTube. Posted on Sep 19, 2018.)
The arrests in “Operation Open House,” in which police posed as children on popular mobile apps and websites, were made between Sept. 5 and 9.
“We want child predators to know that we’re on social media, too, and that the next child that they may target may be an undercover officer waiting for them with handcuffs,” Grewal said Tuesday.
Authorities say Thomas Fuller, 44, Toms River thought he was communicating with a 15-year-old boy. Fuller is an assistant manager/sterilization technician.
He was charged attempted luring or enticing a child with a purpose to commit a criminal offense against the child, and Attempted Sexual Assault on a Minor.
Grewal added that parents and family members have a critical role in keeping children safe by familiarizing themselves with apps popular among young people and making sure they are age-appropriate.
“Just like you are vigilant about a stranger approaching your child in a park, you need to be equally if not more vigilant about the dangers lurking in these new cyber playgrounds,” he said while standing next to a poster board displaying some of the apps police have seen child predators use to lure children — everything from dating apps like Tinder and Grindr to gaming apps like Fortnite and Minecraft.
Conte’s arrest was reported earlier this month by the Asbury Park Press.
Grewal said Tuesday that in chats with an undercover officer posing as a 15-year-old girl, the sergeant had claimed he was a 19-year-old male.
He allegedly said he had sex previously with underage girls, Grewal said, and wanted to meet the girl to “get naked.”
Conte had condoms in his pocket when he was arrested, Grewal said.
The officer has been suspended, has surrendered his weapons and is under court-ordered home detention, the attorney general said.
Officials said Tuesday that most of the arrests in the operation were made at a four-bedroom residence in Toms River but declined to specify its location.
A few men were arrested at other meet-up points or stopped in their cars after driving near those locations.
One man, Nabindranauth Nandalall, 24, traveled from as far away as the Bronx, while others drove 60 miles or more from within New Jersey for what they allegedly thought would be sexual encounters.
The second-degree luring charge faced by all 24 men carries a sentence between five and 10 years in prison. Many of the men also face additional charges, such as second-degree attempted sexual assault on a minor.
Five men were charged with third-degree attempted sharing obscene materials with a child for allegedly sending photos of their genitals to undercover officers.
The operation involved more than 30 law enforcement agencies from around New Jersey, including the New Jersey Regional Internet Crimes Against Children Task Force, which is led by the state police.
The undercover officers who conducted the online chats were members of that task force.
They set up accounts on Kik, Skout, Whisper, Grindr and other social platforms, and when chatting began identified themselves as 14- or 15-year-old children, the Attorney General’s Office said.
Despite that, the men engaged them in conversations about sex.
“While there have always been child predators, what this investigation highlights is that their methods are constantly changing in the internet age,” Grewal said.
See the full list of the men arrested in Operation Open House at bottom
(Please share. Are you sure your kids know who they’re talking to online? If someone demands sexual images from you, stop immediately and report it. In this PSA, the Department of Justice (DOJ) and the National Center for Missing & Exploited Children (NCMEC) explore the dangers of sharing images online. Courtesy of the National Center for Missing & Exploited Children and YouTube.)
Important Information from The New Jersey State Police Digital Technology Investigations Unit
How to report a crime or suspicious incident involving children
If you wish to report an instance of child endangerment and the suspect or victim lives in the State of New Jersey, please utilize the Computer Crimes Task Force Hotline
1-888-648-6007
If you wish to report an instance of child endangerment utilizing a web reporting system or you are unsure as to the location of the child, please utilize the Cyber Tipline Reporting System Sponsored by the National Center for Missing and Exploited Children http://www.ncmec.org
The National Center for Missing and Exploited Children (NCMEC) acts as a clearinghouse of information received from various sources and distributed to law enforcement.
The New Jersey State Police is an Internet Crimes Against Children Task Force and receives all Cybertips linked to New Jersey.
(Learn More from a News 12 NJ interview with the New Jersey State Police Digital Technology Investigations Unit. Courtesy of News 12 NJ, The New Jersey State Police and YouTube. Posted on Jun 21, 2016.)
Internet Safety Tips
The New Jersey State Police is dedicated to the safety of everyone utilizing the internet. The following rules are suggested by The National Center for Missing and Exploited Children and endorsed by the New Jersey State Police.
Internet Safety Tips for Kids
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I will not give out personal information such as my address, telephone number, parents’ work address/telephone number, or the name and location of my school without my parents’ permission.
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I will tell my parents right away if I come across any information that makes me feel uncomfortable.
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I will never agree to get together with someone that I “meet” online without first checking with my parents.
- If my parents agree to the meeting, I will be sure that it is in a public place and bring my mother or father along.
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I will never send a person my picture or anything else without first checking with my parents.
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I will not respond to any messages that are mean or in any way make me feel uncomfortable.
- It is not my fault if I get a message like that.
- If I do, I will tell my parents right away so that they can contact the online service.
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I will talk with my parents so that we can set up rules for going online.
- We will decide upon the time of day that I can be online, the length of time I can be online, and appropriate areas for me to visit.
- I will not access other areas or break these rules without their permission.
Adapted from Child Safety on the Information Highway by Lawrence J. Magid. Copyright 1994 National Center for Missing & Exploited Children (NCMEC). All rights reserved.
(Please share – October is National Cyber Security Awareness Month and Clicky’s new video teaches kids about downloading mysterious files online. Courtesy of the National Center for Missing & Exploited Children and YouTube.)
Internet-Related Safety Tips for Teens
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Don’t give out personal information about yourself, your family situation, your school, your telephone number, or your address.
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If you become aware of the sharing, use, or viewing of child pornography on line, immediately report this to the National Center for Missing & Exploited Children at 1-800-843-5678.
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When in chat rooms remember that not everyone may be who they say they are.
- For example a person who says “she” is a 14-year-old girl from New York may really be a 42-year-old man from California.1
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If someone harasses you online, says anything inappropriate, or does anything that makes you feel uncomfortable, contact your Internet service provider.
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Know that there are rules many Internet Service Providers (ISP) have about online behavior.
- If you disobey an ISP’s rules, your ISP may penalize you by disabling your account, and sometimes every account in a household, either temporarily or permanently.
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Consider volunteering at your local library, school, or Boys & Girls Club to help younger children online.
- Many schools and nonprofit organizations are in need of people to help set up their computers and Internet capabilities.
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A friend you meet online may not be the best person to talk to if you are having problems at home, with your friends, or at school – remember the teenage “girl” from New York in Tip number three?
- If you can’t find an adult in your school, church, club, or neighborhood to talk to, Covenant House is a good place to call at 1-800-999-9999.
- The people there provide counseling to kids, refer them to local shelters, help them with law enforcement, and can serve as mediators by calling their parents.
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If you are thinking about running away, a friend from online (remember the 14-year-old girl) may not be the best person to talk to.
- If there is no adult in your community you can find to talk to, call the National Runaway Switchboard at 1-800-621-4000.
- Although some of your online friends may seem to really listen to you, the Switchboard will be able to give you honest, useful answers to some of your questions about what to do when you are depressed, abused, or thinking about running away.
1 Adapted from Teen Safety on the Information Highway by Lawrence J. Magid. Copyright respectively 1994 and 1998 National Center for Missing & Exploited Children (NCMEC). All rights reserved.
2 Adapted from Children Online: The ABCs for Parenting: When Is Your Child Ready by The Children’s Partnership. Reprinted with permission of The Children’s Partnership. http://www.childrenspartnership.org
Original post https://www.njsp.org/division/investigations/digital-tech-investigations.shtml
Additional information can be obtained from the National Center for Missing and Exploited Children at www.ncmec.org or at www.netsmartz.org.
Who Was Arrested in Operation Open House?
Those arrested names and other identifying information are below, as provided by the attorney general’s office Tuesday.
Parentheses indicate who they allegedly believed they were communicating with.
- Mina G. Beshay, 27, of Monroe Township in Middlesex County
- (Girl, 15)
- Beshay is a security guard. Additional charges: Attempted Debauching Morals of a Child (3rd degree), Attempted Showing Obscene Material to a Minor (3rd degree).
- Christopher Vargas, 29, of Toms River
- (Boy, 15)
- Vargas is a registered nurse.
- Joshua Rauter, 31, of Little Egg Harbor Township
- (Girl, 14)
- Rauter is a municipal public works employee.
- Additional charges: Attempted Debauching Morals of a Child (3rd degree), Attempted Showing Obscene Material to a Minor (3rd degree).
- Joseph Martin, 35, of Seaside Heights
- (Girl, 14)
- Martin is unemployed. Additional charge: Attempted Sexual Assault on a Minor (2nd degree).
- Richard Hoffman, 23, of Mays Landing
- (Girl, 14)
- Hoffman is a firefighter and a college student.
- Volvi Lowinger, 23, of Lakewood
- (Girl, 15)
- Lowinger is a college student.
- Additional charges: Attempted Sexual Assault on a Minor (2nd degree), Attempted Debauching Morals of a Child (3rd degree), Attempted Showing Obscene Material to a Minor (3rd degree).
- Thomas Graciano, 28, of Brick
- (Boy, 15)
- Graciano is a physical therapist in a retirement community.
- Thomas Blumensteel, 47, of Manchester
- (Boy, 15)
- Blumensteel is a hotel manager and a registered sex offender.
- He was sentenced to three years in New Jersey State Prison in 1997 for aggravated criminal sexual contact for sexually assaulting a boy, 13, whom he was supervising as a church counselor.
- Additional charge: Attempted Sexual Assault on a Minor (2nd degree).
- Richard Conte, 47, of Farmingdale
- (Girl, 15)
- Conte is a police sergeant with the Howell Township Police Department.
- Thomas Fuller, 44, Toms River
- (Boy, 15)
- Fuller is an assistant manager/sterilization technician.
- Additional charge: Attempted Sexual Assault on a Minor (2nd degree).
- Zachary Vincent, 24, of Forked River
- (Girl, 15)
- Vincent is a landscaper.
- Additional charge: Attempted Sexual Assault on a Minor (2nd degree).
- William Singleton, 24, of Pemberton Township
- (Girl, 14)
- Singleton is a restaurant worker.
- Additional charge: Attempted Sexual Assault on a Minor (2nd degree).
- Jonathan Vece, 22, of Turnersville
- (Girl, 14)
- Vece is a canvasser.
- Additional charge: Attempted Sexual Assault on a Minor (2nd degree).
- Lawrence Ivancic, 51, of Toms River
- (Girl, 14)
- Ivancic is unemployed.
- Additional charge: Attempted Sexual Assault on a Minor (2nd degree).
- Robert Lisicki, 51, of Metuchen
- (Boy, 15)
- Lisicki is a train conductor.
- Additional charge: Attempted Sexual Assault on a Minor (2nd degree).
- Dylan Daffron, 28, of Lacey Township
- (Boy, 15)
- Daffron is a cashier at a retail store.
- Additional charges: Attempted Sexual Assault on a Minor (2nd degree), Attempted Debauching Morals of a Child (3rd degree), Attempted Showing Obscene Material to a Minor (3rd degree).
- Steven Portnoy, 27, of Egg Harbor Township
- (Girl, 15)
- Portnoy is unemployed.
- Additional charge: Attempted Sexual Assault on a Minor (2nd degree).
- David Studnicky, 64, of Toms River
- (Boy, 15)
- Studnicky is employed as a dry cleaner.
- Additional charges: Attempted Sexual Assault on a Minor (2nd degree), Attempted Debauching Morals of a Child (3rd degree), Attempted Showing Obscene Material to a Minor (3rd degree).
- Anthony Perfidio, 24, of Barnegat
- (Boy, 15)
- Perfidio is a data entry clerk.
- Brian Degnan, 33, of Toms River
- (Boy, 15)
- Degnan is a data entry clerk.
- Nabindranauth Nandalall, 24, of Bronx, N.Y.
- (Girl, 15)
- Nandalall is unemployed.
- William D. Davis, 23, Bayville
- (Girl, 15)
- Davis is a consultant.
- Charles Schlottfeld, 26, of Bayville
- (Girl, 14)
- Schlottfeld is a mechanic.
- Additional charge: Attempted Sexual Assault on a Minor (2nd degree).
- Douglass Walton, 54, of Hillsborough
- (Boy, 14)
- Walton is employed in produce.
- Additional charge: Attempted Sexual Assault on a Minor (2nd degree).
