Ronald Littlehale, 64, of Holmes Beach, pleaded not guilty at his Jan. 10 arraignment in DeSoto County on 13 felony charges of soliciting a child for unlawful sexual conduct.

A sting operation by the DeSoto County Sheriff’s Office, together with a central Florida task force on Internet-related crimes, led to Littlehale’s arrest Nov. 9, following a report from a DeSoto County resident about suspicious activity on her Facebook account.

Twelth Circuit Court Judge James S. Parker appointed the public defender’s office to represent Littlehale, and set a docket sounding for Feb. 8.

At Littlehale’s next court date, assistant state attorney Cliff Ramey expects a demand for discovery and time to respond, however, the docket sounding may determine whether the case is ready to be set for trial.

Littlehale was formally charged with 10 counts of transmission of harmful material to minors by an electronic device, two counts of obscene communication/soliciting a child for any unlawful sexual conduct by computer and one count of electronic transmission of pornography.

Information available at press time indicates Littlehale remains in custody at the DeSoto County jail with bond set at $130,000.