Suspect drove to Fayette for appointment with undercover deputy

A Jonesboro woman who ran a prostitution business through the Craigslist website was arrested Friday afternoon after trying to make a house call in Fayetteville, sheriff’s deputies said.

Unbeknownst to the suspect, her “client” was actually an undercover sheriff’s deputy, according to Lt. Belinda McCastle of the Fayette County Sheriff’s Office.

Leticia Marie Cadena, 31, of Walnut Creek Lane, Jonesboro, was arrested by deputies while she was still in her vehicle, before she could meet up with the fictitious client, McCastle said.

Cadena attracted clients through a listing on the website of Craigslist.org, an online marketplace that initially began to pair sellers with buyers. The site offers personal ads of an explicit nature as well.

Since her release, Cadena made a posting on Craigslist to warn others in her trade to avoid coming to Fayetteville, McCastle said.
This investigation was an offshoot of a recent incident in which a Fayetteville man was robbed after ordering a prostitute online, McCastle said.

In that incident, the prostitute told her client that she was going outside to smoke a cigarette, and then two other people broke into the residence and robbed the client, McCastle said.

The investigation into Cadena began by looking up her website and calling her phone number, as a deputy asked what services were provided, McCastle said. Then, as Cadena drove to Fayetteville, the deputy asked what color and type of car she was in, McCastle added.

Deputies approached Cadena’s vehicle and after she responded that she was indeed the person they were looking for, she was arrested, McCastle said.

Cadena was charged with one count of prostitution.