ELYRIA — A 49-year-old New York man thought he was sending sexually explicit video of himself to a 14-year-old boy in Lorain County but learned Tuesday he had just become the first online sexual predator netted by the Lorain County Sheriff’s Office.

Robert S. Forsyth, 49, of Horseheads, N.Y., was charged with disseminating indecent material to minors, a second-degree felony, by New York State Police following a four-month local investigation by the Lorain County Sheriff’s Office.

Lorain County Sheriff Phil Stammitti said Forsyth’s arrest couldn’t come soon enough.

“We want to get these guys,” Stammitti said. “They’re messing around with our most cherished commodity — our children.”

The bust comes after more than a year of searching the dot-com world with the assistance of the Internet Crimes Against Children Task Force (ICAC) — a federally funded program composed of 59 regional agencies that ensures cyber enticement and child pornography offenders are picked up by outside agencies.

Lorain County sheriff’s Capt. Richard Resendez said Forsyth began chatting online with the deputy on July 8, and eventually used a webcam to record himself masturbating.

In all, Forsyth and the deputy had 12 separate conversations, all of which contained conversation that was sexual in nature or included masturbation, Resendez said.

While in custody, Forsyth admitted to being the one who talked with the deputy, Resendez said, and further charges could come pending the investigation of files on his computer.

Three local deputies have been trained using the ICAC protocol, and each tries to spend available on-station time luring sexual predators their way.

Resendez said catching predators online may be a little different in the real world, but requires the same amount of patience.

Throw in the ever-changing high-tech aspects, he said, and law enforcement agencies have to work even harder to snag their suspects.

“They build a wall, we have to build a taller ladder,” Resendez said.

Contact Stephen Szucs at 329-7129 or sszucs@chroniclet.com. 

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