Chief James V. Rio said those arrests, along with pending investigations by Farmington and a number of other local and state police agencies, are symptomatic of the widespread misuse of the Internet to lure children into illicit conversations that sometimes lead to sex abuse.

Although satisfied with the efforts thus far with his online investigations unit, Rio said it could often be difficult keeping his investigators from moving too far afield, especially when suspects live in other states.

Det. James F. McLaughlin, of the Keene, N.H., police department, has investigated online sex abuse of minors and electronic transmission of child pornography that have led to more than 200 arrests in the United States and abroad since 1996. McLaughlin, who trained Farmington detectives to do online investigations, said he has seen nothing in the past 10 years to indicate the problem is lessening.

It actually has gotten worse, he said, as the Internet allows people who likely would never engage in such risky behavior in their own communities to meet and arrange illegal encounters with minors in another community, state or country.

High-profile arrests such as Farmington's and public stings such as those aired on the "To Catch a Predator" feature on NBC's "Dateline" are unlikely to deter people who have an inclination toward abhorrent behavior, he said.

Prevention is key, law enforcement officials say, and public awareness of the problem - and ways to prevent it - grows with each investigation and arrest.

McLaughlin said more parents must learn how certain features of hardware and software can protect households from being victimized. Also, adolescents must not be so carefree with the kinds of information they share, and with whom, on the Internet.

Computer forensics investigator Sgt. James Wardwell, of the New Britain Police Department, said the number of local police agencies patrolling for online predators has grown from only a handful when New Britain launched into it 10 years ago.

He has helped Farmington and other police agencies recover forensic evidence from computer drives, cellphones, digital cameras and hand-held PDAs.

One of Wardwell's cases, the 2003 conviction of Internet sex offender John Sorabella III of Stow, Mass., and his appeal set the legal foundation in Connecticut for police to conduct sex stings on the Web.

According to the Connecticut judicial branch, convictions were obtained in 14 of the 27 online-sex-solicitation cases in state courts from fiscal 2004 to 2006. The rest were either dismissed or dropped.

With the launch of Farmington's online investigations unit, the courts are getting busier. Monthly, at least 25 local, state and federal law enforcement agencies meet to swap information on investigations and technology, Wardwell said.

Cooperation among law enforcement, particularly with out-of-state investigators, has been key to Farmington's ability to track and arrest sexual predators.

Its lead online investigator, Sgt. Marshall Porter, said the hunt for online sex offenders is carried out as painstakingly as other investigations handled by his four-member investigations unit. Entrapment - offers or tactics meant to entice a person to break the law - is a threat in such investigations.

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