3 men arrested on child solicitation charges

Caldwell County sheriff’s investigators arrested three men recently on child solicitation charges.

In each case, a man contacted and solicited children via social media sites to meet for sexual acts, Sheriff Alan Jones said. In each case, a man arrived at a location to meet with a child but was met and arrested by investigators, Jones said.

Ronald Dean Henson, 49, of Hickory, Matthew Lawrence Rich, 25, of Lenoir, and Kenneth Summey Welch, 45, of Conover, were each charged with solicitation of a minor by computer to commit an unlawful sexual act and appear at a meeting location.

Henson was arrested July 22, Welch on Aug. 7 and Rich on Monday.

Each was jailed on $25,000 bail.

This story was originally published August 20, 2015 at 8:34 AM with the headline "3 men arrested on child solicitation charges."