A retired judge from suburban Cook County was one of 108 people arrested in a large undercover operation in central Florida targeting human traffickers, child predators and prostitution, according to authorities.
Daniel Peters, 66, was identified Wednesday at a news conference announcing the results of "Operation March Sadness 2," a six-day undercover sting conducted by the Polk County Sheriff's Office, NBC News reported.
Peters, of Palos Hills, told detectives that he was a retired judge from the Cook County 4th Subcircuit and a former special assistant for legal affairs at the Cook County Sheriff’s Office, according to Polk County authorities.
Peters was charged with soliciting a prostitute, authorities said.
Others arrested in the probe included four Disney employees and a 17-year-old boy.
Undercover detectives found the suspects through online sites that identified prostitutes and victims looking for "johns," authorities said. The detectives then communicated with the suspects, arranged to meet them and arrested the suspects at the location.
The sheriff's office said members of anti-trafficking organizations would assist to speak with the prostitutes to determine if they were human trafficking victims and to offer help.
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