A detention officer with the Maricopa County Sheriff’s Office is facing felony charges after being arrested in an undercover operation targeting suspected child sex trafficking offenses.
According to court records, 37-year-old Emmanuel Carreon of Glendale was taken into custody Thursday in Chandler and booked on one count of child sex trafficking.
Investigators allege Carreon communicated through social media with an individual he believed was a 15-year-old girl. Authorities say the account was actually operated by an undercover officer with the Chandler Police Department as part of a sting operation.
Court documents allege Carreon discussed paying for sex and later arranged to meet the purported teenager in Chandler. Police say he provided photographs of himself during the online conversations, allowing investigators to identify him.
Authorities allege Carreon agreed to pay $100 and traveled to a designated meeting location, where surveillance officers observed him driving through the area before attempting to make contact with the person he believed he was meeting.
He was arrested without incident during a traffic stop. Investigators reported recovering $100 in cash from his possession.
The sheriff’s office said Carreon recently graduated from the agency’s detention academy and began working at the Lower Buckeye Jail in April. He has since been placed on paid administrative leave pending the outcome of the case.
Carreon is scheduled to appear in court next month for a status conference and preliminary hearing. A judge set his bond at $200,000.
The investigation remains ongoing.
