A 38-year-old Florida man was sentenced to 25 years in the Florida Department of Corrections, followed by five years of probation Monday.
Jurors found 38-year-old Glenn Talmage Cunningham guilty last month on four counts of Transmission of Harmful Material to a Minor and two counts of Computer Pornography to Seduce, Solicit, Lure, or Entice a Child to Engage in Any Illegal Act.
Cunningham failed to appear for his trial, resulting in an arrest warrant being issued after jurors rendered their guilty verdict. He was arrested five days later in Marion County.
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“Our office would like to thank the dedicated law enforcement officers who took part in this operation,” said Bill Gladson, Fifth Judicial Circuit State Attorney. “As a result of their efforts and the successful prosecution by our team, predators like Cunningham know there will be severe consequences for attempting to entice a minor child for sexual gratification.”
In March of 2023, Cunningham was arrested by Citrus County Sheriff’s Office (CCSO) officials during CCSO’s High Tech Crimes Unit undercover Internet Crimes Against Children operation called Operation Lucky Strike. The operation was aimed at apprehending internet cyber predators who attempted to engage in sexual activity with a child.
As part of the operation, law enforcement officials posed as minors on websites waiting to be solicited through online messages by child predators, who would send sexually explicit pictures, messages, and detailed requests of various sexual activities they wanted to perform with the child.
During the operation, law enforcement officials were contacted by Cunningham, who had knowingly texted and called who he believed to be a 14-year-old female child. After sending two graphic images and continuously contacting the decoy, officials had enough evidence to arrest Cunningham.
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An arrest warrant was issued and CCSO deputies made contact with Cunningham shortly after. Cunningham told officials that he believed he was speaking to an adult, despite the numerous pieces of evidence showing he acknowledged the person to be only 14 years of age via a chat forum and text messages.
Additionally, Cunningham admitted to sending the decoy pornographic images of male anatomy.
Assistant State Attorneys Blake Shore and Elizabeth Colombrito successfully prosecuted this case.
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