Man Indicted for Online Solicitation

LONGVIEW – A Hallsville man has been indicted for online solicitation of a minor. According to KETK, Gregg County judicial records show 33-year-old Shane Chapman was indicted on October 19 following his arrest during a sting operation. The Child Exploitation Unit of the Texas Attorney General’s Office collaborated with the Arlington Fugitive Apprehension Unit and the Longview Police Department during the week-long operation in May. Officials began the investigation into a mobile dating smartphone app using the undercover persona of 15-year-old children, according to a search warrant.

According to the document, Chapman communicated in a sexually explicit manner with the undercover persona of a 15-year-old girl through email and text messages. Chapman is accused of soliciting someone he believed was a child to meet for purposes of engaging in sexual activity. Chapman set up a meeting in a Longview park and described his truck, the affidavit said. Chapman was arrested upon arrival at the park. In an interview after his arrest, he admitted to having communicated with a person he believed to be a 15-year-old child and to traveling to meet for sex. Chapman was booked into the Gregg County Jail on May 22, but has since been released on $15,000 bond.