Wanted sex offender caught in Alabama
He is accused of exposing himself and attempting to lure children into his truck.
DBell@CalhounTimes.com
A registered sex offender who had been sought by the Calhoun Police Department and other law enforcement agencies was arrested recently and is in the process of being transferred to Whitfield County to face new charges of child molestation, indecent exposure and enticing a child.
Thomas Justin Wooten, 37, of 597 Daniel Road, Trenton, was arrested in Huntsville, Alabama, last week on outstanding warrants from the Whitfield County Sheriff’s Office.
Whitfield Sheriff Scott Chitwood said Wednesday that Wooten had previously been reported in multiple locations, including Calhoun, as exposing himself to children and attempting to lure children into his black Chevrolet Z71 pickup truck.
The Calhoun Police Department has also levied two counts each of enticing a child for indecent purposes and public indecency, both felonies.
CAUGHT,
Whitfield authorities began investigating after receiving such reports in November only to discover that Calhoun authorities were also actively investigating similar incidents. They later discovered the same suspect had exposed himself and tried to lure a child into his truck using toys back in March of 2018 in Chattanooga, Tennessee. Wooten was arrested by Chattanooga police for indecent exposure and was out of jail on bond.
During the investigation law enforcement officials discovered Wooten is a registered sex offender in Dade County. They also were able to locate the truck outside of Wooten’s place of business and match it and stickers on the vehicle to descriptions
given to Calhoun and Whitfield authorities. Additionally, cellphone data also placed Wooten at the scene of the crimes in both locations.
Last week, with the assistance of Dade County Sheriff’s Office and Calhoun Police Department, the Whitfield sheriff’s office executed a search warrant on Wooten’s residence in Dade County. As a result of the search warrant, additional items of evidence were collected and the warrant for the new charges was filed.
Wooten was arrested in Alabama last Friday and was being transferred to Whitfield County on Wednesday.
Chitwood said that the Calhoun Police Department, Dade County Sheriff’s Office, Chattanooga Police Department, Georgia Bureau of Investigations and Huntsville Police Department all assisted with the investigation.