AUTHORITIES SEEK PUBLIC’S HELP

RIVERSIDE – A man has been arrested after reportedly chatting on a dating app with someone he believed to be an underage girl, then agreeing to meet her at a park in Beaumont.

However, the person he believed to be a 13-year-old girl was an undercover DA’s Office investigator on the Sexual Assault felony Enforcement/Internet Crimes Against Children (SAFE/ICAC) task force. The task force is led by the DA’s Bureau of Investigation working in partnership with several other law enforcement agencies. 

Leonides Edgardo Guzman, DOB: 9-15-92, of Phelan, was arrested on Aug. 5, 2020, by task force members on suspicion of various felonies, including sending harmful matter to a minor, and contacting a minor for sex. He was booked and is being held in lieu of $200,000 bail. 

Authorities believe there may be underage victims who have had contact with Guzman and are asking for the public’s help in identifying them. If you, or someone you know, had or may have had any illicit contact with the suspect, you are asked to call the task force toll-free at (866) 723-3595 or email [email protected].  

“This latest operation involving our SAFE/ICAC Team has successfully arrested yet another dangerous alleged sexual predator and we will continue to actively pursue these predators in our communities,” said the District Attorney’s Chief of Investigators Joe DelGiudice. “While reports of these types of online predatory incidents against children have increased during the pandemic, the citizens of Riverside County should know that the DA’s Office and, especially our Bureau of Investigation, are vigilant in its mission to keep children safe and hold offenders accountable.”  

According to investigators in this case, the undercover investigator told Guzman they were a 13-year-old girl, and, during their “chats”, Guzman sent the undercover investigator multiple inappropriate/illegal photos. Guzman arranged a meeting at a park in Beaumont, where he was arrested.  

The SAFE/ICAC task force works in partnership with the following other agencies: Riverside County Sheriff’s Department, Riverside County Probation Department, the Beaumont, Murrieta, and Riverside police departments, California Department of Corrections & Rehabilitation, FBI, U.S. Department of Homeland Security, and U.S. Marshals Service. The task force is an affiliate with the San Diego SAFE/ICAC. For more information about the task force or sex offender information and internet safety tips, please visit RCCET.