LAKE CITY, Fla. — Detectives with the Lake City Police Department arrested a Live Oak man during an undercover Internet Crimes Against Children operation targeting individuals accused of attempting to exploit minors online.
Authorities said detectives assigned to the Internet Crimes Against Children Task Force continued the operation on May 19, 2026, in Lake City.
During the investigation, detectives posted undercover advertisements on a website commonly used to arrange sexual encounters and posed online as teenage girls.
Investigators said 51-year-old Kevin Dale Tallant of Live Oak engaged in sexually explicit conversations with individuals he believed were minors.
According to detectives, Tallant also electronically transmitted photographs of himself to someone he believed was a teenage girl.
After establishing probable cause, investigators obtained an arrest warrant that was reviewed by the State Attorney’s Office and signed by a judge.
Tallant was later located and arrested by the Suwannee County Sheriff’s Office and is being held pending extradition to Columbia County.
Gerald Butler said the investigations are designed to identify and arrest people who use the internet to target children before an actual child becomes a victim.
Anyone with information about crimes is encouraged to contact the Lake City Police Department at (386) 752-4343, the LCPD TIPS line at (386) 719-2068, or Crime Stoppers of Columbia County at (386) 754-7099.