The Hall County Sheriff's Office announced Wednesday that one suspect has been arrested in the wake of an undercover sex sting, while another remains at large.
Kevin Frank Welborn, 44, of Hartwell, was arrested in Hart County Tuesday and was later transported to the Hall County Jail. Welborn was charged with sexual exploitation of a minor.
Richard Gearin Hall, 38, of Monroe, remains at large on a sexual exploitation of a minor charge.
The sheriff's office previously announced last week that it was searching for both men.
Original story published Thursday, March 1, at 6 p.m.:
Hall County Sheriff’s Office Investigators are searching for two additional suspects in connection with the agency’s Operation Good Shepherd undercover sting.
Richard Gearin Hall, 38, of Monroe, and Kevin Frank Welborn, 44, of Hartwell, were identified as suspects on January 12 and 13, 2024, during the first phase of the undercover operation. Both have eluded arrests.
The warrant for Hall is for a felony count of sexual exploitation of a minor after he had voice and text conversations referencing a meeting for drug use and sexual relations with someone he believed to be a child under the age of 16.
Welborn’s warrant is for one felony count of sexual exploitation of a minor after he used an electronic device to arrange a meeting for the purpose of having sex with someone he believed to be a child under the age of 16.
HCSO investigators, along with members of the Internet Crimes Against Children Task Force, have arrested a total of 21 suspects in two phases of Operation Good Shepherd so far.
