39-year-old man arrested in Ferriday after traveling there to meet minor

Published 4:37 pm Wednesday, March 22, 2023

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VIDALIA, La. — Concordia Parish deputies arrested a man Wednesday who reportedly traveled to Ferriday to meet a minor for a sexual excursion to Lafayette.

On March 20, Concordia Parish Sheriff’s Office Cyber Crime Unit received a complaint from a parent about an adult man having inappropriate conversations with their child on social media.

Deputies received the child’s device and took over the online chat with the man identified as John P. Swett, 39, of Columbia, Louisiana.

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Their conversations reportedly consisted of Swett referring to the juvenile as “wifey.” He made plans to pick up the child in Ferriday Wednesday and travel together to Lafayette, where they could stay in a hotel room for several days.

He arrived in Ferriday around 2:30 p.m. and met CPSO detectives and was taken into custody.

Swett is charged with indecent behavior with juveniles and computer-aided solicitation of a minor.