A 65-year-old St. Petersburg man has been arrested on charges that he sexually abused a young child he knew through her family, according to a news release from the St. Petersburg Police Department.
65-year-old Lawrence Airdo, of St. Petersburg, is accused of committing sexual battery and lewd and lascivious molestation against a child under the age of 12.
Detectives opened the case on November 30 after a young girl told her parents she had been sexually abused by a man known to the family, prompting them to contact law enforcement. Investigators with the department’s crimes against children unit interviewed the child and gathered additional evidence.
Airdo was taken into custody and booked on charges of sexual battery on a child under the age of 12 and lewd and lascivious molestation by an adult on a child under the age of 12.
Airdo was transported to the Pinellas County jail following his arrest.
As with all criminal cases, the allegations in the affidavit have not been proven, and Airdo is presumed innocent unless and until proven guilty in court.​