Crystal River man sentenced to 20 years for attempting to solicit a minor

William M. Gladson, State Attorney
Fifth Judicial Circuit of Florida
Serving Marion, Lake, Citrus, Sumter and Hernando Counties

On November 6, 2023, 46 year-old Jeff D. Adams of Crystal River, Florida was sentenced to 20 years with the Florida Department of Corrections by the honorable Judge Joel Fritton. Adams will be required to register as a sexual offender. He was found guilty by jurors last week after a nine-minute deliberation.

Assistant State Attorneys Kevin Davis and Blake Shore were the leading prosecutors for this case.

"Adams knowingly sent sexually explicit messages to who he believed was a minor," said William "Bill" Gladson, Fifth Judicial Circuit State Attorney. "Luckily, it was a law enforcement officer posing as a 14 year-old boy, but that's not always the case...We...will continue to punish those to the Nth degree for preying or attempting to prey on our children. Thank you to Sheriff Mike Prendergast and his team of professionals at the Citrus County Sheriff's Office for keeping our community safe."

Adams was arrested in March 2023 during the Citrus County Sheriff's Office (CCSO), "Operation Lucky Strike," a tactical undercover Internet Crimes Against Children (ICAC) operation engaged and executed by Sgt. Tiffany Barry to apprehend dangerous cyber predators who attempted to engage in sexual activity with a child. Over the course of this operation, the Citrus County Sheriff's Office worked collaboratively with the United States Secret Service, Florida Department of Law Enforcement (FDLE), Marion County Sheriff's Office, Hernando County Sheriff's Office, Sumter County Sheriff's Office, and Tavares Police Department.

During the operation, CCSO detective Roscoe Watts and Kyle Helfritz posed as a minor on various websites, waiting to be solicited through online messages by child sex predators. Knowing the alleged age of the 'child,' Adams sent the alleged 'child' sexually explicit messages, engaged in conversations with him, and detailed sexual activities he wanted to perform with the 'child.'

Adams was arrested, charged with traveling to seduce or solicit a child in a sex act, and unlawful use of a two-way communication device. His bond was set at $27,000.

During an interview with CCSO detectives Patrick Martin and Ryan Brown, Adams admitted, that if the alleged 14 year-old child had shown up at the meeting location, he would have taken a photo of the child and used it later for sexual gratification.

Adams had been incarcerated for ten years for a 2001 sexual offense case in which a plea agreement was made for a non-sexual offense, which did not require him to register as a sexual offender, according to Brittney Carman, Public Information Officer II with the Fifth Judicial Circuit of Florida.