WASHINGTON — A Metro employee was arrested during a business trip in Tennessee after arranging to meet who he thought was a 15-year-old for a sexual encounter.
Metro announced Friday that 53-year-old Christopher Riggins, a Laurel, Maryland, resident, was arrested Sept. 14. during a sting while in Tennessee for official business travel. Certain Metro employees regularly travel for work purposes, such as inspecting contractor facilities or meeting with vendors.
Riggins, who had worked at the transit agency for a decade, worked as an engineering technician in the Track and Structures Department, Metro spokesman Dan Stessel said.
During the trip, Riggins used a Metro-issued electronic device to arrange a meeting with a person he believed was a 15-year-old girl for a sexual encounter. The person he was communicating with, however, was an undercover investigator with the Knoxville Police Department.
Police arrested Riggins at the meeting place they had arranged. He was charged with felony solicitation of a minor and aggravated statutory rape.
Following Riggins’ arrest, Metro placed him on administrative leave. He was terminated following an internal investigation that concluded Friday.
Metro is asking anyone with information pertaining to the case to contact its hotline at 888-234-2374 or via email at wmata-oig-hotline@verizon.net.
