Press Release
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Date: 01/08/07

Contact person(s):

Media Coordinator, Donna Edwards - 565-3099 Media Spokesperson, Assistant District Attorney Christine Cook

Santa Rosa, Sonoma County, California

GUILTY PLEA IN DATELINE STING CASE

District Attorney Stephan Passalacqua announced today that on January 3, 2006, Mohammed Aksoum pled no contest to attempting a lewd and lascivious act on a child under the age of fourteen. Aksoum was arrested as a part of the Dateline NBC sting operation conducted in conjunction with the Petaluma Police Department. Aksoum will be sentenced on March 8, 2006, in front of the Hon. Judge Rene Chouteau.

District Attorney Passalacqua hailed the conviction as resulting from a successful joint sting operation to protect the community’s children from predators.

Aksoum engaged in graphic conversations of a sexual nature with a person he believed to be a thirteen year-old child, who was actually a volunteer participating in the sting from the organization Perverted Justice. After discussing his desires to engage in sexual activity, Aksoum made arrangements to go to the home of the alleged child. When Aksoum drove to the home and entered the property, after meeting Dateline NBC staff, he was arrested by the Petaluma Police Department.

Deputy District Attorneys Juliette Olson and Tashawn Sanders were the prosecutors assigned to this case. Detective Steve Nelson of the Petaluma Police Department was the lead investigator, and Sgt. Matthew Stapleton of the Petaluma Police Department headed up the sting operation.