Randall Dale Staton, age54 of Bakersville has been charged with Trafficking for a Commercial Sex Act and Solicitation of a Minor. Staton was one of seven arrested as part of a sting operation by the Tennessee Bureau of Investigations Human Trafficking Unit. Over a two-day period beginning on Wednesday, June 9, authorities placed several decoy advertisements on websites known to be linked to prostitution and commercial sex cases. The focus of the operation was to identify individuals seeking to engage in commercial sex acts with minors. Seven men from Western North Carolina, Virginia and Tennessee were arrested and booked into the Unicoi County Jail as a result of the operation. All seven are accused of attempting to solicit sex from minors, in a two-day undercover operation with the The Tennessee Bureau of Investigations, the Erwin Police Department, the Unicoi County Sheriff’s Office, the Washington County Sheriff’s Office, the Jonesborough Police Department and the 1st District Attorney General Ken Baldwin office.
In a press release, the TBI provided the following identities and charges of the suspects:
- Mark Daniel Higgins (DOB 1/31/62), Asheville, NC: Solicitation of a Minor by Electronic Means, Solicitation of a Minor
- Jeffrey Lynn Rhoney (DOB 5/8/60), Arden, NC: Trafficking for a Commercial Sex Act (2 counts), Solicitation of a Minor (2 counts), Purchase of Alcohol for Someone Under 21
- Steven Charles Mayes (DOB 12/19/73), Morristown: Trafficking for a Commercial Sex Act, Solicitation of a Minor
- Benjamin Bouchot Moreno (DOB 6/15/70), Asheville, NC: Trafficking for a Commercial Sex Act (2 counts), Solicitation of a Minor (2 counts)
- Jose Raul Delgado Andrade (DOB 6/5/80), Johnson City: Trafficking for a Commercial Sex Act, Solicitation of a Minor
- Alberto Vazquez Gonzalez (DOB 4/1/75), Bristol, VA: Trafficking for a Commercial Sex Act, Solicitation of a Minor
- Randall Dale Staton (DOB 9/5/66), Bakersville, NC: Trafficking for a Commercial Sex Act, Solicitation of a Minor
