A 75-year-old American man who had legally adopted the name Santa Claus was arrested in Louisiana last weekend after trying to meet a person he believed to be a 15-year-old teenager, according to local authorities.
• Also read: Santa Claus was a monster: Réjean Bacon admits to having sexually assaulted several young women
• Also read: Santa Claus guilty of sexual assault: long hours of heinous videos
Police in Kenner, a town near New Orleans, say the suspect spoke with an undercover officer, posing as a 15-year-old boy as part of an operation targeting suspected sexual predators.
According to police, the man allegedly held sexual conversations on an app with someone he believed to be a minor before setting up a date.
Investigators specified in a press release that he would have transmitted intimate photos of himself during the exchanges, reported the British media The Guardian.
The suspect showed up at the agreed location, where he was arrested without resistance.
According to authorities, the septuagenarian legally went by the name “Santa Claus” after changing his identity from George Quigley. Investigators also say they discovered images showing him dressed in the traditional Santa Claus costume.
Kenner Police Chief Keith Conley said the arrest should serve as a warning to parents, particularly because the suspect allegedly participated in activities where children were invited to pose for photos with him.
The man now faces charges related to the alleged electronic solicitation of a minor and indecent behavior toward a minor.
He was still detained early Tuesday, according to The Guardianand the authorities had not yet announced the terms of a possible release.
This arrest is part of a large operation which led to that of 11 suspects.
Ten other people are also wanted under arrest warrants for offenses including solicitation of minors and child luring.
Unrelated to this affair, Quebec was also shaken by the case of Réjean Bacon, a former impersonator of Santa Claus in Quebec also aged 75.
He admitted last February to having filmed himself while he sexually abused several young women who were completely drugged and unconscious.
This cause, distinct from that of Louisiana, had deeply shaken the public.
