Authorities say Jacksonville man arrested after traveling to meet 14-year-old girl

COLUMBIA COUNTY, Fla. — A Jacksonville man was apprehended early Friday evening on Mar. 17 after he travelled to Columbia County to meet a 14-year-old girl.

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Columbia County Sheriff’s Office said the Selwyn Diaz Diaz, 35, was arrested by detectives after he had been talking with who he thought was a 14-year-old girl. In reality, Diaz Diaz was speaking with one of CCSO detectives the entire time.

The investigation began on Mar. 15, when detectives from the Internet Crimes Against Children unit were contacted by Diaz Diaz through a social media platform. The suspect believed he had been speaking with a 14-year-old girl and made plans to meet the teen in Lake City.

Read: Jacksonville child sex trafficker and producer of videos of child sex abuse sentenced to 55 years

The suspect than travelled on Friday from Jacksonville to meet the teen at a pre-arranged location. Undercover detectives were conducting surveillance at the location when Diaz Diaz arrived. He was taken into custody without incident.

“This is a sobering reminder of the dangers that exist to our children,” Sheriff Mark Hunter said in a statement. “We work proactively with these types of cases to prevent children from becoming victims, but this could have easily been an actual juvenile who could have been victimized. With electronic devices being so common, I would encourage parents to always monitor what their children are doing and who they are communicating with.”

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Diaz Diaz confessed to detectives that he intended on meeting the teen in Lake City and taking her back to Jacksonville with him. He was booked into the Columbia County Detention Facility and charged with travelling to meet a minor, solicitation of a minor and unlawful use of a two-way communication device.