A sting operation from WFTV(TV) in Orlando, Fla., led to the arrest of a Palm
Beach, Fla., prosecutor after, police reported, he exposed himself to a girl he
thought was 13 and tried to lure her into cybersex.
Police made the arrest in West Palm Beach, Fla., interrupting a trial that
38-year-old Ira Karmelin was prosecuting.
The station was investigating pedophilia on the Internet using a Webcam and a
young-looking staffer posing as an underage girl.
The Webcam video with Karmelin, the station said, speaks for itself. "You see
Karmelin's face, but let's just say that's not the first thing he exposed
through his Webcam during the first video chat."
WFTV reported that Karmelin asked his cyber-partner to take off her top and
told her, "I want you to be bad with me." The station added, "When he was not
nude, Karmelin was bold enough to wear a shirt with the criminal-justice logo
visible during one Web chat."
Following the Web conversations, the station contacted police, who tracked
Karmelin through his internet account.
Karmelin -- a former deputy sheriff who reportedly was considered a likely
candidate for judgeship someday -- has been suspended without pay and is free on
bond.
