U.S. Department of Justice
Federal Bureau of Investigation
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U.S. Department of Justice Federal Bureau of Investigation |
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| In Reply, Please Refer to Release No. |
219 South Dearborn Street Chicago, Illinois 60604 |
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April 29, 2002 Ohio Man Arrested in Internet Sting Thomas J. Kneir, Special Agent in Charge of the Chicago Office of the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) announced today the arrest of MARK RICHARD VERTAL, age 25, of Dublin, Ohio. VERTAL was arrested late Saturday night, without incident, by FBI Special Agents and Officers from the Cook County Sheriff's Police Department (CCSPD), Child Exploitation Unit, in Forest Park, Illinois. VERTAL will be charged in a criminal complaint filed later today in U.S. District Court in Chicago with one count of Interstate Travel-Sexual Abuse of a Minor, which is a felony offense. According to the complaint, VERTAL is alleged to have traveled from his home in Dublin, Ohio to the Chicago area to have sexual relations with a thirteen year old girl that he met over the internet. In reality, the thirteen year old that VERTAL had traveled to meet was in fact a member of the CCSPD, Child Exploitation Unit. The Officer had initiated contact with VERTAL on-line, several weeks earlier, as part of the CCSPD's regular investigation of possible Child Sexual Exploitation. VERTAL, who has been held since his arrest Saturday night, is scheduled to appear before U.S. Magistrate Judge Ian H. Levin at 11:00 AM. The public is reminded that a complaint is not evidence of guilt and that all defendants in a criminal case are presumed innocent until proven guilty in a court of law. EDITOR'S NOTE: A copy of the complaint filed against VERTAL is available from the Chicago FBI Press Office at (312) 786-2645. |
