Officials from the Okaloosa Sheriff’s Department in Florida have arrested one of their own amid charges that he allegedly solicited a nine-year-old girl for sex, WKRG reports. The deputy, Cansas Sadler has since been fired.
“I’m always disheartened when someone sworn to serve and protect commits any crime,” said Okaloosa Sheriff Larry Ashley in a statement. “It’s an affront to all the hard-working, dedicated, law enforcement officers who work tirelessly each day to keep our citizens safe.”
He concluded by thanking law enforcement officials in Polk and Okaloosa counties.
“I greatly appreciate their teamwork and professionalism in working to develop the evidence, arrest, and hold the suspect accountable,” he said.
Sadler, 41, is charged with misrepresenting his age and using a computer solicit a child, and using a two-way communications device to facilitate a felony in his county of residence, his former employer reports. Sadler faces an additional charge in Polk County of transmission of material harmful to a minor by electronic device, Law & Crime reports.
Authorities allege that Sadler contacted the young girl through “The Wolf,” a gaming app. The alleged victim was pretending to be 11, said Polk County Sheriff Grady Judd during a Thursday press conference. And Sadler, going by the name “Jade,” was also pretending to be 11, the sheriff added.
Sadler used this ruse to groom his alleged victim, telling her that “Jade” was having sex with “Jason,” a friend of her dad’s, and now “Jason” wanted to have sex with her, Judd said. The situation continued to escalate, with “Jason” (Sadler) exchanging nude photos with the girl.
Then the girl’s older sister discovered she was communicating with an adult male and told their mom about it. That’s when mom decided to scroll through the child’s phone. As fate would have it, “Jason” decided to call his victim right at this very moment. The mother then called Polk County deputies, who reviewed the incident and contacted their counterparts in Okaloosa County.
Judd said that Sadler, who has two daughters of his own (ages 11 and 16), is a former U.S. Army Ranger and trainer. He recently joined the Okaloosa County Sheriff’s office and was still completing a probationary period as a new deputy.
Near the end of the presser, he expressed concerns that there may be more victims:
“But I can tell you, you don’t arrive at the age of 41 and do this for the first time. He didn’t just happen to be on a gaming site grooming a nine-year-old child — and that’s what he did.”
Young girls are safer now with this monster behind bars, where we hope he’ll remain for years to come.
Featured image courtesy of the video above
