HOCKING COUNTY, Ohio — Five men are facing charges after being arrested as a part of a joint human trafficking sting operation.
According to Hocking County Sheriff Lanny North, the FBI, Hocking County Sheriff’s Office, and Southeastern Ohio Human Trafficking Task Force arrested the men after several individuals around the region responded to online ads. The ads, officials said, were for individuals who wanted to pay to engage in sex acts with women and children.
Those arrested were:
- Kyle Crowe, 22 of Chillicothe, was arrested and charged with Engaging in Prostitution, a 1st Degree Misdemeanor.
- Wayne D. Horsley, 52 of Athens, was arrested and charged with Engaging in Prostitution, a 1st Degree Misdemeanor.
- A 17-year-old juvenile was charged with being delinquent, by Engaging in Prostitution, a 1st Degree Misdemeanor.
- Erick M. Wrestler, 50 of Logan, was arrested and charged with Engaging in Prostitution, a 1st Degree Misdemeanor.
- Stewart Rebell, 49 of Ware, Massachusetts, was arrested on a warrant for Importuning, a 4th Degree Felony. The warrant was issued by Task Force Agents for Rebell, who is a registered sex offender, and had previous convictions for juvenile sex offenses, including multiple charges of rape of a child, by force, or with the threat of murder.
Rebell planned to meet with investigators who were posing as a fifteen-year-old female in Ohio and then take that child with him out of state. Rebell was located and arrested by Massachusetts State Police for the warrant and will be extradited to Ohio.
Hocking County Sheriff Lanny E. North, stated “I want to thank the Southeastern Ohio Human Trafficking Task Force, the FBI, and the Massachusetts State Police for helping to conduct this operation. Due to the response, we received from individuals across the county, we anticipate conducting additional human trafficking operations in the future.”