A 23-year-old Winder man is behind bars after he repeatedly tried to meet a 14-year-old for sex, the Hall County Sheriff’s Office said.
Matthew Cody Smith was arrested Thursday after a months-long child exploitation investigation by Hall and Barrow county deputies as well the Georgia Internet Crimes Against Children Task Force.
Authorities learned about him during “Operation Interception,” a sting that started before the Super Bowl in an attempt to catch child predators in the Atlanta area.
RELATED: Super Bowl security: 33 arrested on sex-trafficking charges
Smith tried to engage in a sexual relationship with a girl he believed was 14 on more than a dozen occasions between Jan. 31 and June 5, sheriff’s spokesman Lt. Scott Ware said.
ALSO: 82 arrested in multistate child exploitation sting
Smith is charged with 13 counts of sexual exploitation of a child and remains held without bond at the Hall County Jail.
MORE: Sheriff's office clerk fired after arrest in multistate child exploitation sting
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