Citizen Groups Tackle Child Predators In the face of rising online child exploitation, citizen groups in Santa Cruz, California, and Albuquerque, New Mexico, are stepping up. Some are ending up facing felony charges themselves.
These groups, often using social media platforms, are running sting operations to apprehend child predators. However, their methods have stirred up both controversy and legal examination.
Santa Cruz: The Child Safety Soldiers In Santa Cruz, a group called the Child Safety Soldiers has been running stings targeting underage sex predators. The group was established by Shane Coyle, a resident of New Jersey, following an inappropriate online interaction with his 11-year-old daughter.
A recent operation resulted in the arrest of a 40-year-old man, Kirill Viktorovich Neledva, who was charged with multiple felonies, including soliciting sex acts, contacting a minor with sexual intent, and distributing or exhibiting lewd material to a minor. The group had been communicating online with Neledva for three months, pretending to be a 13-year-old girl.
The Santa Cruz Police Department confirmed that they had met with the Child Safety Soldiers team prior to arresting Neledva. Deputy Police Chief Jon Bush commended the group for their efforts to present the case to his department with thorough research.
Albuquerque: A similar group has been active, but their methods have resulted in legal repercussions.
Four individuals were charged with false imprisonment after they enticed a man to a specific location, confronted him, and prevented him from leaving.
The group, led by 19-year-old Santiago Sanchez, had been running sting operations targeting suspected child predators. However, APD Commander Kyle Hartsock cautioned that only law enforcement is permitted to impersonate underage minors for the purpose of conducting such investigations.
A Word of Warning While these groups may have commendable intentions, law enforcement officials caution against such vigilante actions. They emphasize that these operations should be conducted by trained professionals to ensure safety, legality, and ethical conduct.
Despite the controversy, these citizen groups persist in their mission to protect children from online predators. Their actions underscore the pressing need for more comprehensive measures to tackle online child exploitation. In North Carolina a police task force took down 14 predators legally, best to leave police work to the police.
