MOUNT VERNON — Two men have been taken into custody at the Skagit County Jail after being charged with several crimes in connection to their arrests last month during an online child-predator sting.
Jail records show Joshua Joseph Solomon, 29, of Anacortes was booked about 1:30 p.m. Friday. Matthew Ryan Beltran, 37, of Stanwood was booked about 4:30 p.m. Thursday.
Both men were bailed out of jail after their arrests but before formal charges were filed, investigators said.
A coalition of local law enforcement officials known as the Skagit Multiple Agency Response Team announced Oct. 9 that charges have been filed against five men who were arrested during a monthlong undercover investigation into potential online sex predators in Skagit County.
Charges may also be filed against a 17-year-old boy arrested during the sting, pending a judge’s decision on whether he can be tried as an adult. All of those arrested are in custody.
Solomon is charged with one count of commercial sex abuse of a minor, one count of communication with a minor for immoral purposes, both felonies, and one count of third-degree attempted child rape, a gross misdemeanor. His bail amount was not immediately available.
He was arrested Sept. 19 near a park in Mount Vernon after investigators say he attempted to solicit sex from an undercover detective posing online as a 14-year-old girl and agreed to exchange money for specific acts, according to court documents filed by prosecutors.
Beltran is charged with one count of commercial sexual abuse of a minor, one count of communication with a minor for immoral purposes, both felonies, and one count of third-degree attempted child rape, a gross misdemeanor. His bail is set at $100,000.
Beltran was arrested Sept. 24, and is accused of offering to give an undercover detective posing as a 14-year-old girl a $27 department store gift card to pay for sex.
