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SALT LAKE CITY — A Maryland man wanted in connection to soliciting a minor for sex in Virginia was arrested in Salt Lake City, officials said.
Derrick La Marr Jones, 35, of Catonsville, Maryland, was arrested and booked into Salt Lake County Jail last week, according to jail records.
Loudoun County (Virginia) Sheriff’s officials said Tuesday Jones was wanted on suspicion of illegal use of a communication system to solicit with lascivious intent with a minor.
Police said they received a report on March 7 from the family member of a teenage girl in Ashburn, Virginia, a town roughly 30 miles northwest of Washington, D.C., that said the teenager had been engaging in sexual activity with a man believed to be an adult after communicating with him on social media.
Police later identified the man as Jones and said he had provided transportation for the teenager to travel to the Baltimore area to meet him.
Authorities said they believe Jones uses social media to contact girls at entertainment and comic book conventions using different aliases, such as "Kanovski Zan-Lee Vulgen," "Kano" or "Lee," and introduces himself as being in his late teens or early 20s.
It is believed that Jones has been in several areas across the country since March including Salt Lake City, Phoenix, Los Angeles, Albuquerque, Orlando and Sacramento, police said, though it was unknown if there were any other victims.
The Loudoun County Sheriff’s Office is seeking information regarding potential victims who may have known, associated with or communicated with Jones. Anyone with any information can contact detective J. Suess at 703-777-0475 or can submit a tip through the Loudoun County Sheriff’s Office app.
