DHS's 'Operation Predator' snares two of its own
It's called "Operation Predator," a high-priority Department of Homeland Security program that does battle against those who prey sexually on children.
Now, with the arrest Tuesday night of a department deputy secretary, at least two of the agency's own top personnel stand charged with just such offenses.
Brian Doyle, deputy press secretary to Homeland Security Secretary Michael Chertoff, faces 23 counts of using a computer to seduce a child and transmitting harmful materials to a minor. He was caught in a police Internet sting in which a detective pretended to be a 14-year-old girl.
The other Homeland Security official charged with a sexual offense involving a girl is veteran administrator Frank Figueroa, 49, the ICE special agent in charge of the agency's operations in central and northern Florida. Figueroa, who also ran the agency's El Paso, Texas, office, has pleaded not guilty to charges he exposed and fondled himself to a teenage girl last year at a mall in Tampa.
Former Top DHS Child Porn Official A Sex Criminal?
Now we discover -- that law enforcement agent, Frank Figueroa, used to run Operation Predator.
The victim, a 16-year-old girl, said Figueroa pulled up a leg of his shorts, exposed himself and masturbated for about 10 minutes, according to the Tampa Tribune.
Figueroa was in court this morning; he pleaded no contest to charges of exposure of sexual organs and disorderly conduct. He had formerly said he was not guilty. His trial is expected to begin tomorrow.