Police Log

By Daniel Kittredge
Posted 2/11/16

By DANIEL KITTREDGE

13 arrested in paid-sex sting

Cranston police on Feb. 4 announced the arrest of 13 men – including three Johnston residents – following a joint sting operation targeting …

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Police Log

Posted

By DANIEL KITTREDGE

13 arrested in paid-sex sting

Cranston police on Feb. 4 announced the arrest of 13 men – including three Johnston residents – following a joint sting operation targeting online prostitution.
According to a statement from Chief of Police Col. Michael Winquist, detectives and agents set up “at an undisclosed location in Cranston” on Jan. 29.
The statement indicates the focus of the operation was on “attacking the demand side of prostitution” – those responding to advertisements posted by escorts on Backpage.com.
Undercover detectives are said to have posed as prostitutes on the website, drawing responses soliciting sex.
Among those charged with procurement of sexual conduct for a fee were three Johnston residents: Kyle Gravel, 22, of 394 George Waterman Road; Douglas Carpenter, 61, of 10 Woodlake Drive; Jason Hiatt, 39, of 2732 Hartford Ave.
Other Rhode Island residents facing the same charge are Louis Parente, 52, of 2 Woodhaven Boulevard in North Providence; Jason McWilliams, 42, of 70 Grandview Drive in Cumberland; Dina Seng, 45, of 209 Wendell St. in Providence; and Andrew DeSilva, 25, 9 Oakland Road, in Richmond.
David Monte, 36, of 18 Willow Drive in Smithfield, is charged with counts of procurement of sexual conduct for a fee, possession of cocaine, and possession of marijuana.
Three Massachusetts men are also charged with procurement of sexual conduct for a fee: Joseph Viera, 59, of 299 Providence St. in Rehoboth; Suragi Bhattacharjee, 43, of 17 Oriole Circle in Shrewsbury; and Thomas Valaouras, 51, of 11 Columbus Ave. in Milford. Valaouras was additionally charged with one count of simple assault.
All 13 men were arraigned and released with a Feb. 18 court date, according to Winquist’s statement.
The Cranston Police Department Special Victims Unit, the Rhode Island Human Trafficking Task Force, FBI, and Providence Police Department took part in the operation.

Woman arrested in bank robbery

A local woman was arrested Wednesday in connection with a Cranston bank robbery.
Shannon G. Sampson, 27, with a last known address of 55 Manual Ave. in Johnston, was taken into custody without incident shortly after midnight, according to a statement from the Cranston Police Department. She was located at the Attleboro Motor Inn in Attleboro, Mass., based on a tip.
Sampson was arraigned in Attleboro District Court as a fugitive from justice, and waived extradition. She was due to be arraigned in Third District Court in Warwick Wednesday afternoon on one count of second-degree robbery.
The heist occurred shortly after 10 a.m. Tuesday at the Santander branch at 555 Reservoir Ave. in Cranston. The suspect is said to have handed a teller a note demanding money, and then fled on foot toward the rear of the bank after receiving approximately $10,000 in cash. No one was injured in the incident.

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