Operation Fall Haul II: Georgia cop Jason DiPrima among 160 people arrested in sex trafficking sting
POLK COUNTY, FLORIDA: A sex sting operation led to the arrest of as many as 160 people, and also busted Georgia Police Officer Jason DiPrima. The week-long sting, called 'Operation Fall Haul II', led investigators to at least two sex trafficking victims, the Polk County Sheriff’s Office announced. At a press conference, Sheriff Grady Judd said it is possible there are more victims. “Our goal is to start services the moment that they are taken into custody and to treat them as what they are, victims, not as suspects in a criminal event,” Judd said.
Two Disney employees, a state corrections officer, several teachers, and ex-Officer DiPrima were also arrested as a result of the sting. According to Sheriff Judd, the deputy police chief of Georgia’s Cartersville Police Department is “no longer a police officer", according to New York Post. In a Facebook post, The Cartersville Police Department wrote, "Following the arrest of Deputy Chief DiPrima by the Polk County Sheriff’s Office (Florida), he was placed on administrative leave. On Thursday, September 8, 2022, Jason DiPrima resigned from his position of employment with the Cartersville Police Department."
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DiPrima responded to an online escort advertisement while he was in Orlando attending a polygraph training workshop. The advertisement, in reality, was part of the Polk County Sheriff's Department's undercover operation. The day before his arrest, DiPrima had a conversation with an undercover detective.
"Are you available tonight? I'd like to come see you—what is your rate?" he asked in a text message, according to Fox News. Authorities said he agreed to meet for sex, but later "got spooked" and asked to meet the following evening. He eventually agreed to pay $120 for a half-hour of "full-service," the sheriff's office said.
DiPrime arrived at the location in an undercover police cruiser which is generally assigned to US Drug Enforcement Administration agents. He was arrested after he gave the detective $180 and a multi-pack of White Claw Hard Seltzer. "What are you thinking?" Polk County Sheriff Grady Judd said at the press conference. "You just want to go ‘c’mon man, have you lost the last three brain cells, or do you just have cabbage for brains?'"
DiPrima told the detective that the night before getting arrested, he spoke to another prostitute online, who asked him to put $200 on a CashApp, and click a picture of it. The escort then allegedly took the information on the card and stole the money. "This guy's a cop — and he was conned by a prostitute," Judd said.
High school IT expert Cameron Burke from Ocoee, Floridawas also arrested. He was reportedly busted during the sting for soliciting a prostitute. Burke was out on bond after being previously arrested for sexually assaulting a 15-year-old student. Among the others who were arrested were Carlos Gonzales, an Osceola County math teacher as well as John Layton, an Orange County physical education teacher.