Local man among those arrested on solicitation charges

The Northeast Ohio Human Trafficking Task Force in conjunction with Wickliffe Police Department and the Lake County Sheriff’s Office recently arrested six men for allegedly attempting to buy sex, among them a Columbia Station man.

Ohio Attorney General Dave Yost and Lake County Sheriff Frank Leonbruno made the announcement on Feb. 21

Eastlake City Council President John Meyers, 47, was among six men charged with solicitation, said a news release.

“The point of our task forces is to send a message to those who buy and sell human beings: We’re coming for you, we’re going to bust you and make sure everybody knows what you did. Don’t buy sex in Ohio!” Yost said in the release. “Special thanks for Sheriff Leonbruno, whose office recently joined this task force and has hit the ground running.”

The five others arrested were: Andrew Champa, a 40-year-old Wickliffe resident; Alvin Bridges, a 47-year-old Euclid resident; Ronald Bevier, 30, from Columbia Station; Garrett Kellogg, 20, Strongsville; and Salvatore Longo, 44, Beachwood.

Bridges also faces a felony charge of drug possession. Each of the men received a summons through Willoughby Municipal Court.

“The Lake County Sheriff’s Office is proud to be part of the Northeast Ohio Human Trafficking Task Force and proud of the collaborative effort of all the involved agencies,” Chief Deputy Robert Izzo of the Lake County Sheriff’s Office stated in the release. “If even one victim of human trafficking can be identified and helped, then the operation is a success and worth the effort.”

The task force identified four potential victims of human trafficking, who were offered social services.

The task force is one of six law enforcement collaboratives formed under Yost’s Ohio Organized Crime Investigations Commission directed at combatting human trafficking. The Northeast Ohio Human Trafficking Task Force is led by the Cuyahoga County Sheriff’s Department.