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A 52-year-old Sequim resident has been arrested for allegedly attempting to sexually exploit two children, a Clallam County Sheriff’s Office (CCSO) stated.

Craig A. Gallauher was caring for a nine-year-old boy and a 10-year-old girl sometime between March 31 and April 4, according to CCSO.

Sequim man allegedly sexually exploits two minors

Gallauher, a known family friend of the two children, had an encampment near the Dungeness River where the children visited.

The children asked Gallauher if he could take them fishing. Gallauher allegedly said he would take them fishing if they both got naked so that he could take pictures of them, according to the release.

Additionally, Gallauher told the minors that he had made a “sex chair” at his campsite and told the kids that they would have to sit on the chair naked. The chair was described as a circle of dirt near a tree at Gallauher’s campsite, according to CCSO.

Both children were uncomfortable with the statements Gallauher made and fled the campsite.

The two minors’ escape plan prompted Gallauher to tell the kids that “Monsters would come and get them if they didn’t come back,” according to the CCSO release.

Forensic interviews from the CCSO Detectives with each minor revealed there was probable cause for Gallauher’s arrest, with two counts of attempted sexual exploitation of a minor (Class B Felony), and two counts of Luring (Class C Felony), according to CCSO.

The area near the Dingeness Railroad Bridge Park was searched by CCSO Detectives, and a campsite that matched the description of Gallauhers was located, which had the same dirt mound described by the two minors, the release stated.

Gallauher was arrested on June 13, just before 10:00 p.m., by Sequim Police Officers and transported to the Clallam County jail.

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