RI State Police Arrest 13 Men On Child Exploitation Charges

LINCOLN, RI — The RI State Police Internet Crimes Against Children (ICAC) Task Force have arrested 13 men, including one Warwick man, on child exploitation charges during a roundup following an undercover sting Jan. 24 through Jan. 26 they termed “Operation Guardian.”

During the sting, undercover ICAC detectives used 16 social media applications and online classified ads to communicate with the men.

The men believed they were communicating with juveniles aged 13 to 15 year-old of all genders. The suspects arranged to meet these purported juveniles for various sexual acts at a pre-determined location. At the conclusion of the two days, the men were arrested. Several additional arrests are possible, state police report.

The men arrested and the charges against them, are:

Jose Carrion, age 41, of 130 Jones Street, Apt. 1, Attleboro, MA was arrested on the charges of: 

Indecent Solicitation of a Child

Possession of Cocaine

 Kevin Cooney, age 27, of 24 Ann Marie Drive, Bellingham, MA was arrested on the charges of:

Indecent Solicitation of a Child

Electronically Disseminating Indecent Material to a Minor

 Tomy Fitton, age 39, of 40 Mill Street, Pawtucket, RI was arrested on the charges of:

Indecent Solicitation of a Child

Electronically Disseminating Indecent Material to a Minor (5 counts)

Anthony Gomes, age 31, of 10 Main Street, Apt. 1, Brockton, MA was arrested on the charges of:

Indecent Solicitation of a Child

Electronically Disseminating Indecent Material to a Minor

Michael Johnson, age 50, of 177 S. Main Street, Templeton, MA was arrested on the charges of:

Indecent Solicitation of a Child

Electronically Disseminating Indecent Material to a Minor

James Jolly, age 41, of 47 Barden Hill Road, Middleborough, MA was arrested on the charge of:

Indecent Solicitation of a Child

Paul Kimata, age 41, of 685 Oak Street, Apt. 27, Brockton, MA was arrested on the charge of:

Indecent Solicitation of a Child

David King, age 37, of 32 Newton Avenue, Westerly, RI was arrested on the charges of:

Indecent Solicitation of a Child

Electronically Disseminating Indecent Material to a Minor

Yuhua Kong, age 29, of 127 DePasquale Avenue, Apt. 3, Providence, RI was arrested on the charge of:

Indecent Solicitation of a Child

Stephen Lomastro, age 57, of 166 Lakeside Avenue, Warwick, RI was arrested on the charge of:

Indecent Solicitation of a Child

Muhammad Malik, age 44, of 90 McPartland Way, East Greenwich, RI was arrested on the charge of:

Indecent Solicitation of a Child

Emmett Manna, age 37, of 46 Whittier Avenue, Apt. 2, Providence, RI was arrested on the charge of:

Indecent Solicitation of a Child

Manna Mahuri, age 41, of 32 Newport Avenue, North Kingstown, RI was arrested on the charge of:

Indecent Solicitation of a Child

Carrion, Cooney, Gomes, Johnson, Jolly, Kimata, King, Kong, Lomastro, Malik, Manna and Mahuri were all re-arraigned on Jan. 29, 2020, at Sixth Division District Court before Associate Judge Houlihan.

All the men, other than Carrion, received $5,000 personal recognizance with special bail conditions of limited internet use and no unsupervised contact with minors. Jose Carrion received $5,000 surety bail with the same special conditions.

Tomy Fitton was re-arraigned on Jan. 27, 2020, at Sixth Division District Court before Associate Judge Houlihan and issued $50,000.00 surety bail with special bail conditions of limited internet use and no unsupervised contact with minors. Fitton was held as a Superior Court Probation Violator. He is also a sex offender in Massachusetts, but his registration requirement expired in July 2019.

An Indecent Solicitation of a Child charge is punishable by at least five years in prison.

A person found guilty of Electronically Disseminating Indecent Material to a Minor faces up to five years in prison and a $5,000 fine, or both.

A person found guilty of possessing a controlled substance, classified in schedule I or II, faces prison for up to 30 years, and/or a fine ranging from $3,000 to $100,000.