Editor
The Clermont County Sheriff’s Office is currently running an undercover investigation at East Fork State Park to try to stop incidents of public indecency.
This is not the first time the sheriff’s office has investigated public indecency at the park, but the current investigation, which began June 13, is the first in 11 years, said Captain Chris Stratton.
“That may have lead to the problem returning,” he said.
No complaints have been made to the sheriff’s office, but the Ohio Department of Natural Resources has seen a number of complaints. The sheriff’s office is partnering with ODNR, which they have done in past investigations.
Deputies made their seventh arrest on Aug. 10, the sixth day they went undercover. All of those arrested are men between the age of 27 and 73 and all have been charged with public indecency, a third degree misdemeanor. Five men arrested are from Clermont County, one is from Warren County and one is from Adams County. The sheriff’s office is not targeting males, they just have only found males so far, Stratton said.
All of the arrests have been made between 9 a.m. and 5 p.m. even though deputies have been there as late as 10 p.m. Three of the men arrested are married, so Stratton suspects that their spouse could be at work during that time so the men have free time.
When the men approach the undercover deputies, sometimes there is communication and sometimes the men expose themselves without any conversation. The men have made advances both in the bathrooms and on the trails, and take a car backed into a parking spot to be a signal, Stratton said.
The investigation will continue until the problem subsides. While none of the men have been violent, these men have been on the same trails that families hike on.
“I don’t think there’s any concern for safety,” Stratton said.
There is not any particular area of the park that sees incidents more than any other.
The sheriff’s office is also searching craigslist, as some do seek encounters using the website.
The deputies have been very vigilant to make sure that people cross the threshold and meet the elements of crime, so that the cases against them are solid. They have had many contacts with people that did not cross the threshold, Stratton said.
As the investigation continues, Stratton hopes to work with female deputies as well, because there was one reported incident of someone approaching a female in the park.
“There is no real time frame on it,” Stratton said.
He added, “The sheriff is pretty committed to it.”