Republic man arrested after undercover op.

Franco charged with patronizing prostitution, possession of child pornography
 
A Republic man has been arrested following an undercover operation by the Greene County Sheriff’s Office on Oct. 28.
According to court documents, Sebastian Franco responded to an undercover advertisement placed by the Greene County Sheriff’s Office on an online platform known as “Skip the Games.” According to the probable cause statement, the platform is commonly used in order to advertise prostitution.
Officers listed a phone number as part of the ad, one that Franco would respond to, sending text messages back and forth with undercover detectives. According to court documents, Franco offered money and controlled substances in exchange for sexual acts. Franco would also send a picture of a male using drug paraphernalia commonly used to smoke meth.
Franco then agreed to meet the female he assumed he was speaking to over the phone, only to meet the Greene County Sheriff’s Office. According to documents, Franco was detained upon arrival, and during a search of his person, law officials located a white crystalline substance, which was later confirmed to be methamphetamine.
During a subsequent search of Franco’s phone, officials located a video saved on the app known as Telegram, which the probable cause statement said is well known as an end-to-end chat application that is commonly used to facilitate the distribution of child pornography. Documents state that upon opening the saved chats section of the app, Greene County detectives located two videos depicting underage victims performing sexual acts. Upon later interview, Franco said he had received child pornography multiple times.
Franco faces charges of patronizing prostitution, delivery of a controlled substance, and two counts of possession of child pornography. He was served a warrant on Oct. 30 and is set to have a counsel status hearing on Nov. 11.