A City of Lakeland employee is facing several charges after deputies arrested him for luring a teenage girl to have sex with him.
John Waldau, 36, was arrested on New Year’s Eve for having sex with a minor. Deputies say he groomed the girl online through sexually explicit communication.
Polk County detectives started investigating after receiving two tips from the National Center for Missing and Exploited Children about sexually explicit images of an unknown girl being sent via private message on Facebook.
During the investigation, detectives learned Waldau began an online relationship with the minor. A report from the sheriff’s office says he knew the girl through another relationship with an adult.
Detectives say Waldau then “cultivated and transitioned the online relationship into a sexually explicit one that led to sexual intercourse occurring at his home at least three times.”
Waldau is also accused of sending multiple nude images of himself and asking the girl to send sexually explicit images of herself.
Detectives spoke with the 16-year-old victim on New Year’s Eve. The girl told them she and Waldau had sex during the summer of 2018 and said she exchanged sexually explicit photos with him.
According to detectives, Waldau later admitted he and the teenager had sex at his home three times. Waldau told detectives the victim would sneak out to see him or would tell others she was going to a friend’s house.
Detectives say Waldau also admitted to exchanging nude photos and videos over Facebook Messenger and said, “he knew it was wrong but couldn’t stop himself.”
“Waldau is a classic sexual predator who cultivates a relationship with a child online and then turns that relationship into a sexually explicit one,” Sheriff Grady Judd said in a statement. “He knowingly and cunningly took advantage of this girl. We encourage parents to actively monitor their children’s online activities so they can help protect their children from predators like Waldau.”
Detectives say Waldau has been employed with the City of Lakeland for 18 years and works in the Public Works Department.
Waldau is charged with one count of sexual activity with a victim 16 or 17, two counts of transmitting material harmful to a minor, one count of traveling to meet after using a computer to lure a child and one count of unlawful use of a two-way communication device.
He is being held in the Polk County Jail on $40,000 bond.
