Portland man arrested in Redmond PD underage sex sting operation

Police say '15-year-old girl' he met online actually was undercover detective

REDMOND, Ore. (KTVZ) – A 45-year-old Portland man who thought he was communicating online with a 15-year-old girl and sought sexual contact showed up to meet her in Redmond’s Dry Canyon on Tuesday, but was arrested in a police sting operation, officers said.

Martin Jacob Morin reached out online on July 21 to a female who identified herself as being 15 but was actually an undercover Redmond Police Department detective, Lt. Jesse Petersen said Wednesday.

Morin acknowledged the female was 15 and “engaged in sexual conversations with her,” Petersen said.

Morin then arranged to travel to Redmond, intending to meet the girl, give her alcohol and engage in sexual conduct, the lieutenant said.

The meeting was set to occur Tuesday at Dry Canyon Park. Rather than meeting a teen girl, Morin “to his surprise was intercepted” by Redmond police and arrested on charges of first-degree online sexual corruption of a child and luring a minor.

Morin was booked into the Deschutes County Jail in Bend, with bail initially set at $25,000. The bail was reduced to $15,000 by a judge in his initial court appearance Wednesday. He’s due back in court August 5, jail records showed.

According to Oregon law (ORS 167.057), it is illegal for a person to use visual representation or explicit verbal description or narrative account of sexual conduct for the purpose of inducing a minor, if the difference in age is greater than three years, to engage in sexual conduct, Petersen noted.

According to ORS 163.432 he said, it's also illegal for a person 18 years of age or older to use online communication to solicit a child to engage in sexual contact for the purpose of arousing or gratifying the sexual desire of the person or another person and to offer or agree to physically meet with the child.

"The Redmond Police Department will always do its part to look after the safety and protection of the children in our community," the lieutenant wrote. "We are here to protect and prevent all forms of child abuse and hold those accountable who try to hurt our children."

If you suspect a child of being a victim of abuse, Petersen said you can make a report to the Oregon Child Abuse Hotline by calling 1-855-503-SAFE (7233); 24 hours a day, 7 days a week.

You may also report child abuse or neglect to your local police department by calling Deschutes County dispatch at 541-693-6911 for non-emergency situations and 911 if it is an emergency. If you would like to learn more about child abuse prevention please look at the KIDS Center, a child abuse intervention center, https://kidscenter.org/child-abuse-prevention/ for more information