A Salem man implicated in Licking by a group that investigates online predators received a four-year prison sentence.
Toby S. Bronson, who entered a guilty plea in Texas County Circuit Court, was arrested in September 2024 after a member from “Bikers Against Predators” contacted authorities and said a 27-year-old male who had planned to have sexual relations with an 11-year-old girl was scheduled to meet him at the Rodeo Park in Licking.
Licking police arrived at the park where the member and suspect were located. The member of the group provided information, including a text between him and Bronson that was sexual in nature and other exchanges, according to a court filing.
According to a police report, Bronson admitted to being at the park to meet an 11-year-old girl for the purpose of having a sexual relationship and knowingly sending explicit photographs of himself to someone he believed was the girl.
He was charged with felony sexual misconduct involving a child under age 15, first offense.