a man who played Santa Claus, Thomas Allen Hicks, who was at a Polk County Christmas event, was one of 19 people arrested in an undercover operation targeting child predators. The week-long undercover investigation, Operation Child Advocate VIII, began on April 20 and was initiated by the Polk County Sheriff’s Office and multiple law enforcement agencies.
Detectives worked with investigators from multiple sheriff’s offices, police departments and the Florida Department of Financial Services’ Criminal Investigation Division, Fox 13 reported. As many as 19 suspects, including Hicks, were arrested.
Who is Thomas Allen Hicks?
According to the arrest affidavit, Hicks, 68, responded to an ad posted by an undercover detective on a known prostitution website. He provided commercial sex acts to his fictional 15-year-old daughter.
“We arrested Santa Claus,” said Polk County Sheriff Grady Judd. “I want all the kids who are watching to know that this is not the real Santa Claus. Nonetheless, he is well known as a hired Santa in Polk County, Central Florida and Lakeland.”
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Hicks, who said he has been a preacher for more than 40 years, has been playing Santa Claus in the Lakeland Christmas parade for at least the past decade.
“He’s not going to be Santa Claus next year,” Judd said. “Thousands of kids are sitting on this guy’s lap thinking he’s Santa Claus when, in fact, he’s a child sexual predator.”
Hicks arrested after he told undercover detectives he was in the parking lot of a large retail store. After his arrest, he told Investigator He has been married for more than 50 years, but still often goes to prostitution websites to look for “prostitutes” and “companions.”
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Hicks said he was attracted to the woman in the ad because of her petite stature, according to testimony. Despite knowing it might sting, he kept coming back because he was “curious.”
Hicks reportedly admitted that he knew the ad was targeted at underage girls and that he was not supposed to have ongoing contact or sexual thoughts about her. He added that he was unsure whether he would have tried to have sex with the child if he had known she was real.
Hicks was charged with human trafficking, traveling to meet a minor, using a computer to entice a child and using a two-way communication device to commit a felony.
“I talked to the real Santa Claus today and he was angry,” Judd said. “He said it was people like this who gave me a bad reputation, spending so much time traveling around the world delivering gifts to all the good boys and girls. Sheriff, I’m glad you locked him up.”
“You can’t fix these people,” Judd added. “They’re dizzy. Their elevator doesn’t go all the way to the top floor. It stops on the P – pedophile floor. It stops on the P – predator floor. It stops on the C – child predator floor. These are dangerous people.”
Hicks, who worked as a marketing manager for the Tri-County Department of Human Services, told Fox 13 he has been fired.
“Tri-County supports the investigation and activities of the Polk County Sheriff’s Office to keep the community safe,” the company said. “Mr. Hicks does not have access to clients or their electronic health records, nor does he collect any data related to children’s information at any time during the course of his employment.”
