An Odebolt man was taken into custody last (Monday) night for allegedly traveling to Carroll to engage in sexual activity with a minor. According to a Carroll Police Department affidavit, 44-year-old James Robert Cranston was arrested at approximately 8:37 p.m. in the 100 block of S. Adams Street on a charge of enticing a minor under 16 for sexual purposes, a class D felony. Authorities say the 15-year-old male victim contacted law enforcement because he had been communicating with Cranston via Snapchat, and Cranston had sent multiple sexually explicit images to the victim expressing his intent to have sexual intercourse. Cranston then traveled approximately 40 minutes on Monday evening to meet the victim in Carroll at a pre-arranged location near Southside Park. Cranston was taken into custody without incident and booked into the Carroll County jail, where he remained in custody as of this (Tuesday) morning. A class D felony in Iowa carries a maximum penalty of up to five years in prison and $7,500 in fines.
