On Wednesday, Sept. 25, members of the Dartmouth Police Department Investigative Services Division and Community Impact Unit conducted an undercover sting operation to combat the growing threat of commercial sexual exploitation of minors, according to the Dartmouth Police Department.

The detectives worked with the Massachusetts State Police High Risk Victims Unit in an undercover capacity to arrange meetings with suspects in the area.

Numerous individuals initiated communications, the police said.

As a result of the operation, three adult men were arrested and charged with sexual conduct for a fee with a child under 18, enticement of a child under the age of 16 and attempts to commit a crime, the police said.

The suspects, who are all from New Bedford, were identified as Ernest Santos, 36, Dominic Medeiros, 20 and David Detorres, 50.

“Through the efforts of the officers involved, as well as our partnership with the Massachusetts State Police, we were able to prevent exploitation of minors in our community,” said Dartmouth Police Chief Brian Levesque.