PERRYSBURG, Ohio — A Putnam County man was arrested in Perrysburg and put behind bars in Wood County after an online child sex sting in Northeast Ohio, according to the Cuyahoga County Prosecutor.
The sting operation, known as “Operation Spider Web”, resulted in the arrests of 14 people, including 53-year-old Neil Diemer of Ottawa, Ohio.
Perrysburg Police assisted in the arrest of Diemer last Sunday.
"Operation Spider Web" was an undercover operation led by the Ohio Internet Crimes Against Children (ICAC) Task Force, which is run under the direction of the Cuyahoga County Prosecutor's Office.
The sting operation ran from October 26 to October 29.
According to the task force, the defendants, who range in age from 22 to 71-years-old, engaged in sexually explicit online conversations with undercover officers posing as children. Some of the defendants disseminated images of their genitals and others offered to pay for sex during the online conversations.
After the initial conversations, the suspects traveled to a pre-arranged meeting spot in Cuyahoga County to have sex. But instead, they were greeted by law enforcement officials who placed the offenders under arrest. Some of those arrested were in possession of numerous items that were seized and taken into evidence, including condoms, Vaseline, knives, and firearms.
Other people arrested include:
Here is the list of those arrested:
- Randy Wouters, 33, Cleveland, OH
- Warren Grugle, 71, Northfield, OH
- Stephen Simpson, 44, Warren, OH
- Lucas Black, 24, Parma, OH
- Timothy Opincar, 54, Fairview Park, OH
- Alan Radomski, 39, Richfield, OH
- Gonzalo Villafan, 24, Cleveland, OH
- Robert Biddle, 22, Cuyahoga Falls, OH
- Miller Singh, 57, Cleveland, OH
- Shiloh Teiji-Saalim-Moore, 28, Warrensville Heights, OH
- Neil Diemer, 53, Ottawa, OH (arrested by Perrysburg Police Department in Perrysburg, OH – case will remain under Wood County Prosecutor’s Office’s jurisdiction)
- Ted Williams, 56, Cleveland, OH
- Jed Martus, 28, Akron, OH
- Timothy Tatko, 55, Mayfield Heights, OH (arrested in Mayfield Heights)
One of the suspects, 55-year-old Timothy Tatko, is a teacher at Mentor Public Schools.
Neil is facing 4 criminal charges, including rape of a victim under the age of 13, disseminating material harmful to minors, and importuning.
Diemer’s case will be handled by the Wood County Prosecutor’s Office.
His next court date is Monday.
MORE FROM WTOL 11: