Fulton County sheriff arrests 10 men in Wauseon prostitution sting

7/23/2008

WAUSEON - A prostitution sting by the Fulton County Sheriff's Office at a hotel on State Rt. 108 in Wauseon last week netted 10 arrests, authorities said.

The 10 men were arraigned yesterday in Fulton County's Western District Court in Wauseon on one count each of solicitation, a third-degree misdemeanor.

If convicted on the charge, the maximum punishment is 60 days in jail and a $500 fine.

Arrested were:

•Robert F. Hadley, 65, of 5018 Davenport Rd., Sylvania.

•Joseph S. Preventowski, 51, of 2576 West Erie Rd., Temperance.

•Ryan P. Gallagher, 30, of 265 Southwood Drive, Perrysburg.

•Paul L. Onweller, 43, of 608 Brookside Drive, Swanton.

•Ricky L. Hall, 53, of Defiance.

•Kevin R. Korn, 37, of 5949 Harvest Lane.

•Curtis W. Cotterell, 35, of 7643 Jonathan Drive, Holland.

•Todd L. Stricklen, 36, of 1537 Toul Ave., Oregon.

•James T. Cole, 29, of Lyons, Ohio.

•Carroll F. Eaton, 50, of Waldron, Mich.

Sheriff Darrell Merillat said the department launched the sting using an advertisement for "sexual activities" on the online classified site Craigslist.org.

Deputies used an undercover female deputy, while armed deputies monitored the situation from the next room, the sheriff said.

Police seized $1,122.64 and five condoms during the arrests.

The department launched the sting after hearing reports of prostitution at a nearby truck stop.

Sheriff Merillat said he was surprised by the number of responses received during the two-day sting.

The department had not conducted a prostitution sting in more than 24 years, but more may follow, he said.

"We had a lot of responses," he said. "We definitely have a bigger problem than we thought."