Feds: Ohio sex trafficker gave drug addicts pills, cash for their children

CINCINNATI (FOX19) - A 69-year-old southern Ohio man exchanged pills and cash with drug addicts for sex with their children for years and used two of his daughters to cover it up, recently unsealed federal courts show.

And more victims may be out there, authorities warn.

Larry Dean Porter of Scioto County is one of nine people facing several charges for their alleged involvement in a sex trafficking ring of children in Ohio.

Porter sexually abused children, both boys and girls, with their parents consent in exchange for illegal drugs and/or cash for at least the past eight years and possibly decades with some of the mothers participating in the abuse he recorded to blackmail his victims into staying quiet, according to an FBI affidavit.

He was taken into custody in March as part of an undercover sting involving the Jackson County Sheriff’s Office in which authorities say he offered to pay $80 in exchange to access to a 7-year-old girl.

Porter was arrested after arriving at an Oak Hills fast foot restaurant for a pre-arranged meeting, saying he would “be done around midnight,” and could return the girl then, federal records state.

“I am very pleased with these indictments and very proud of my deputies and the part my deputies had in ending this child sex trafficking operation,” Jackson County Sheriff Tedd Frazier said Wednesday.

“Jackson County will not tolerate the actions of anyone who preys upon our children. We will hunt down those that abuse and take advantage of our children and our families. Children should not be placed in circumstances where they are in danger nor traded for drugs.”

Investigators collected evidence at Porter’s home and say they are concerned there are more victims.

“We want to find justice for all of their victims. Please have the courage to come forward and fight for your justice by contacting my office or the FBI,” the sheriff said.

If you believe you may be a victim or have information related to this case, please call the FBI at 614-315-4923.

As of Wednesday, Porter was no longer being held at the Jackson County jail and was in federal custody without bond, the sheriff said.

Porter was charged as part of a 13-count indictment with conspiracy to sex traffic children, attempting to sex traffic children, possessing child pornography he kept on flash drives and used extreme measures to conceal, conspiring to obstruct a child sex trafficking investigation, and conspiring to witness tamper, the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Southern District of Ohio announced Wednesday.

A Jackson County grand jury also has indicted him on charges of attempted rape and involuntary servitude.

He faces up to life in prison on some of the charges.

Porter’s two oldest daughters were charged as well. In the days immediately following Porter’s arrest, two of Porter’s daughters and two of his friends were seen making numerous trips to Porter’s residence and property, according to the FBI affidavit.

Denna Sue, 32, of Wheelersburg and Crystal D. Porter, 39, of Columbus also were seen digging holes in the ground on the property.

On March 20, 2020, officers and agents searched the area and discovered an SD memory card buried inside a glass jar. Court documents allege the memory card contained images of child pornography taken in Porter’s bedroom.

Denna Porter is charged with conspiring to obstruct a child sex trafficking investigation, destroying or removing evidence and making false statements to law enforcement.

Crystal Porter is charged with conspiring to obstruct a child sex trafficking investigation, destroying or removing evidence and making false statements to law enforcement.

Porter’s associates Frank E. Andrews, 68, of Wheelersburg, Ohio, and W. David Cole, 62, of Portsmouth, Ohio were also seen on Porter’s property.

Associates of Porters’s who were arrested are:

Charity Ann Rawlins, 41, of South Webster and Ronnie L. Rawlins, 47, of Oak Hill. They are charged with conspiring to sex traffic children and sex trafficking children.

The couple allegedly took a 7-year-old child to Porter’s residence on a regular basis to traffic the child sexually in exchange for pills a few times a week for up to five years, federal officials said in a news release.

Joshua David Aldridge, 36, of South Webster is charged with conspiring to sex traffic children and sex trafficking children. He allegedly transported minor victims to Porter’s home and received drugs from Porter in return.

During a recorded jail call, Porter and his cousin, Erroll Wayne Porter, Sr. 69, of Wheelersburg, discussed an individual they believed was a source for law enforcement, according to the news release.

Wayne Porter said he “got some things working there, trying to take him down.” In a later call, Porter told Wayne, “Go out and make sure that idiot don’t do something. If you have to put a slug in that son-of-a-b----,” federal records show.

Wayne Porter is charged with conspiring to obstruct a child sex trafficking investigation and conspiring to tamper witnesses.

Frank Andrews is charged with conspiring to sex traffic children, possessing child pornography involving a prepubescent child, conspiring to obstruct a child sex trafficking investigation and destroying or removing evidence.

Agents said they recovered eight DVDs from Andrews’ residence that contained multiple videos of child pornography. Forensic evidence indicated the file titles match those on Porter’s computer.

Cole is charged with conspiring to sex traffic children conspiring to obstruct a child sex trafficking investigation and destroying or removing evidence (up to five years).

Facebook messages allegedly show conversations between Cole and Porter discussing child sex trafficking victims. Cole also allegedly removed and destroyed evidence from Porter’s home.

A number of other women allegedly involved in this conspiracy also were charged locally.

The FBI affidavit that was unsealed last month includes sweeping and at time horrific details of the case, with victims recounting rapes and other abuse and in Porter’s own words in Facebook messages.

Those messages include, according to court documents:

“They good and horny?” he allegedly wrote to the mother of two girls in April 2019.

In another exchange, this time with a third daughter who was not charged in connection with the case, he shared a picture of one of his victims and wrote: “this is my girlfriend, please don’t show anyone ok.”

His daughter responded, “really.”

Porter: “isn’t she pretty.”

Daughter: “I told u not to talk to me about that s--- u realize ur granddaughter is probably the same age.”

Porter: “lol, but she not my granddauther (sic). I couldn’t b with my own family.”

Daughter: “I know but she’s young dad s--- there’s still good looking ones that’s over 18.”

Porter: “that’s true but this 1 is stoned dead in love.”

The FBI began investigating Porter in April 2019 after obtaining information from various sources indicating he had sexually abused numerous children over the years in Scioto County, potentially for decades, according to an affidavit.

One of the sources that initially provided information to law enforcement is someone who “had direct access to children and family in the Scioto County community where Porter resided,” the court document states. That informant saw children who were believed to have been previously abused by Porter grow up and take their own children to him in exchange for drugs and money.

This person gave specific examples of children who said they were taken to his house, and other children the informant observed to have signs of physical abuse after the local child protective services agency began investigating allegations that those children were being abused by Porter, according to the affidavit.

Porter knew authorities were watching him but agreed anyway to pay $80 for a sexual encounter with a 7-year-old girl, in what turned out to be an undercover operation by the Jackson County Sheriff’s Office, according to the affidavit.

In early March, a confidential source had approached detectives regarding information she had about Porter.

He had contacted her by phone several years ago and offered drugs in exchange for allowing him to “babysit” her significant other’s 2-year-old child, according to the affidavit. She explained Porter used the term “babysit” to refer to the time he spent with children during which he sexually abused them or took sexually explicit images of them.

All records in the case were initially sealed by the court at the FBI’s request.

One of the motions to seal the records states “several other identified individuals are suspected to be associates of Porter and involved in similar offenses."

The investigation into those individuals remains ongoing.

“Additionally, a simultaneous investigation by local and state officials into other sex trafficking allegations in the Portsmouth, Ohio area, has brought public and media attention to both investigations,” the motion to seal reads.

“Thus, public disclosure of the documents in these cases would compromise the ongoing investigation, if the existence of the investigation, and particularly information about additional suspects and targets became known to the targets and any potential co-conspirators or other associated persons.”

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