You Just Can’t Make This Shit Up!

Fort Lupton police said they arrested Justin Tolman at his home in Colorado Springs. Inside Tolman’s home, investigators collected evidence in an Internet sting operation that began in early May.

A Fort Lupton police detective posed online as a 14-year-old girl and was sent sexually explicit photos of men and woman in sexual acts, allegedly by Tolman.

Tolman didn’t hide he was a state trooper, said Fort Lupton Detective Crystal Schwartz.

“The first conversation he sent a picture,” Schwartz told 7NEWS.

“The picture was of a male in a Colorado State Patrol uniform standing next to a Colorado State Patrol vehicle,” said Fort Lupton Chief of Police Ron Grannis.

“I asked if he was a cop and he said, ‘guilty,’” Schwartz said.

Detectives said Tolman instant-messaged the undercover detective and made graphic sexual statements in reference to what would happen when they met.

Fort Lupton police contacted the Colorado State Patrol about their suspicions, and the patrol “cooperated on all levels with the investigation,” Grannis said.

“Our children are our most valuable resource. We must do all we can to protect them from predators. The Internet has unfortunately become the stalking grounds of sexual predators,” he said.

Tolman was booked into the Weld County Jail.

“He is on paid administrative leave pending the outcome of the investigation,” Colorado State Patrol Sgt. John Hahn told 7NEWS reporter Lane Lyon Friday.

Hahn said Tolman passed an extensive background check at the time he was hired in July of 2007.