Four arrested in sex sting

• Advocate Florida parishes bureau
• Published: Jul 7, 2009 - Page: 4B

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HAMMOND — During a four-day investigation with undercover officers posing online as children, four men were arrested for allegedly soliciting sex from minors over the Internet, the Tangipahoa Parish Sheriff’s Office reported Monday.

From June 23-26, law enforcement personnel from sheriff’s offices in Tangipahoa, St. John and St. Landry parishes, Louisiana State Police and the U.S. Marshals Service participated in the sting operation at the U.S. Secret Service’s New Orleans Field Office.

One of the four arrested on computer-aided solicitation of a minor is Shawn Eugene Vincent, 30, 5740 Pernbrook Ave., New Orleans, who is an assistant professor of anatomy at Indiana University in Kokomo, Ind., the statement says.

The other three men are:

• Jeffery E. Smith, 41, 2911 Ryan Lane, Wylie, Texas.
• Billy Ray Farmer III, 31, 39726 S. Hoover Road, Ponchatoula.
• Brandon Thibodeaux, 25, 307 Richard Drive, Houma.