11 arrested following child solicitation sting operation in Opelika
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- Eleven men arrested in Lee County sting operation targeting individuals attempting to meet minors for sexual activity.
- Defendants charged with child solicitation, traveling to meet a child for unlawful sex act, and prostitution with minor.
Investigators with the Lee County Sheriff’s Office, along with the Covenant Rescue Group and assistance from the Auburn and Opelika police departments, conducted a two-day sting operation targeting individuals investigators say were attempting to meet a minor for unlawful sexual activity.
According to the Lee County Sheriff’s Office, the operation took place September 17 and 18, 2026, at a local hotel in Opelika.
During the operation, undercover officers communicated online with multiple adult males who investigators say were attempting to travel to the hotel to meet and engage in sexual activity with a person they believed to be a minor female.
The following individuals were arrested: Cecil Leroy Carlton Sr., 49, of Opelika Damarea Amir Yancey, 23, of Opelika Kenneth Michael Hodges, 37, of Tuskegee Yasuf Abdul Hannan Mansaray, 26, of Auburn Cesar Lopez Ramirez, 19, of Auburn Pablo Uscanga, 26, of Auburn James Miles Mcray, 39, of Roanoke Damien Prosser, 60, of Gainesville, Georgia Petr V. Cholak, 48, of Inman, South Carolina Tylik Marcel James, 27, of Union Springs
According to the sheriff’s office, each of those defendants was charged with one count of Child Solicitation by Computer, one count of Traveling to Meet a Child for an Unlawful Sex Act, and one count of Prostitution with a Minor.
All 10 were booked into the Lee County Detention Facility, and bond was set at $130,000 for each defendant.
Treveontae Jamal Hutchinson, 20, of Auburn, was also arrested during the operation. Hutchinson faces two counts each of Child Solicitation by Computer, Traveling to Meet a Child for an Unlawful Sex Act, and Prostitution with a Minor.
Hutchinson was booked into the Lee County Detention Center, with bond set at $260,000.
Lee County Sheriff Jay Jones said the Covenant Rescue Group works to combat human trafficking and child exploitation while partnering with law enforcement through training and operations aimed at identifying individuals who victimize children.
“We stand with them in this effort and will continue to engage in actions to identify and apprehend those who would place our children at risk,” Jones said.
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