FERNANDINA BEACH, Fla. – A Jacksonville Zoo employee was arrested Tuesday, accused of soliciting nude photos and having sex with a 14-year-old foreign exchange student, the Jacksonville Sheriff’s Office said.
According to the arrest report, the boy told detectives that he had consensual sex with a man named "Hello" he met on a dating app called Scruff.
Police said detectives obtained messages and nude photos that were exchanged with James Curry Shuman, 45, of Fernandina Beach, Florida. During the conversation, police said the boy told Shuman he was a high school student. Shuman then asked for nude photos and arranged an in-person meeting for 11 p.m. on Jan. 26 for a sexual engagement, the report said.
The Sheriff’s Office said during the conversation Shuman gave the boy his address in Fernandina Beach. Detectives matched Shuman’s driver’s license photo with the photos exchanged and matched his address with the Nassau County property appraiser.
Police said Shuman was arrested without incident and interviewed at the Jacksonville Zoo, where he is employed as a horticulture technician. The zoo said it will not comment while the situation is under investigation.
Shuman faces charges of lewd and lascivious battery, encourage or entice a person under 16 to engage in any type of sexual activity, possession of child pornography and travel to meet after using a computer to seduce, solicit or lure a child.