Canadian Co. Sheriff's Office Nabs Suspected Child Sex Predator

An Oklahoma City man was arrested Tuesday night, trying to solicit a minor for sex in what turned out to be a sting operation set up by the Canadian County Sheriff's Department.

Nathan Palma, 38, was taken into custody at a McDonald's restaurant near Northwest Expressway and Piedmont Rd. after arranging to meet a person who he thought was a 15-year-old girl, with the goal of having sex.

A deputy with the sheriff's office posed as the girl and told Palma that she was looking to buy a car and would exchange sex for money. The two agreed to meet at the McDonald's to eat and then go someplace to have sex, Tuesday night.

At around 10 p.m. that night, sheriff's deputies entered the restaurant and arrested Palma.

3/12/2013 Related Story: OKC Man Accused Of Soliciting Sex With 14-Year-Old Girl

"When we entered the store, Palma was sitting near the entrance with his order, and the Chicken McNuggets, fries and a Coke our decoy had requested by text message. He had already began eating his burger and had the girl's order nicely arranged in front of a seat on the other side of the table," said Canadian County Sheriff, Randall Edwards.

According to a report by the Canadian County Sheriff's Office, Palma admitted through text messages that he knew her age was a "serious issue", but went through with it anyway because he was "just looking for someone to love him".

"It's my goal to arrest as many of these predators as we can, until we can't get any more to come to Canadian County," Edwards said.

Palma was taken to the Canadian County Jail, where he was booked on the charges of soliciting sexual conduct from a minor and the use of a computer for the purpose of violating Oklahoma  statutes. His bond was set at $55,000.

This isn't the first arrest made by the Canadian County Sheriff's office. Last week deputies arrested a man attempting to solicit sex from a deputy posing as a 14-year-old girl.