Marin Man Uses WhatsApp To Solicit Sex From Minor, Cops Say

MARIN COUNTY, CA — A San Rafael man was recently arrested on suspicion of arranging to meet a minor for sex, annoying a child younger than 18 and resisting arrest, the Marin County Sheriff's Office said Dec. 22 in a news release.

Sheriff's detectives began looking into Manuel Ajualip Ramirez, 31, after a 13-year-old student told their schoolteacher about unwanted contact by an adult. The teacher in turn reported it to School Resource Officer Devon Gasparini.

The investigation by Gasparini revealed Ramirez was soliciting the teen for sexual contact. Ramirez reached out to the teen through his Whatsapp account to solicit explicit photos and ultimately meet the minor for sex, the sheriff's office said.

On Dec. 8, undercover detectives were doing surveillance on the proposed meeting place when Ramirez showed up. When the detectives identified themselves and tried to detain Ramirez, he took off but detectives caught up with him after a brief chase on foot.

Ramirez violently resisted the detectives' efforts to subdue him but ultimately he was taken into custody and did not suffer any injuries in the scuffle, the sheriff's office said.