After announcing his documentary investigation into Roblox sex predators last week, former “To Catch a Predator” host Chris Hansen said he has been “overwhelmed” by the positive user response.
The journalist discussed the upcoming documentary — and ongoing concerns over predators using the online gaming platform to engage with minors — with YouTuber and Roblox “vigilante” Schlep in a new video Friday. The two are teaming up to look deeper into an issue that has long plagued the massive gaming platform. Eight hours after the video went live, it already had nearly 2 million views at the time of publication.
“Since we announced that we’re doing this documentary and that you are collaborating, I am overwhelmed,” Hansen said.
He later added that his experience has lent himself to do right by the effort. “We have the ability to infiltrate this world because we’ve been doing it for 21 years. First with ‘To Catch a Predator’ and for the last two and a half years at TruBlu, our streaming crime network with Takedown. So, we know how to do this and work with law enforcement,” he said, additionally praising Schlep for his efforts exposing predators on the platform, despite pushback from Roblox. “Now, a lot of people can go out and do this stuff independently, but here you are a good example of somebody who has done the work and given it to law enforcement.”
Watch the full interview below:
Hansen expanded on his plans and progress on the case last week online, saying that they are already “deep into it” as they do their “best to hold them accountable” after being flooded with requests online to look into the platform.
“We’re deep into it,” he said. “I’ve already interviewed law enforcement investigators and victims of this horrible activity.”
It’s been a hard month for Roblox. After debuting its new age verification system, Wired revealed that the gaming platform with a massive underage fanbase is about to be flooded with lawsuits claiming the platform facilitated sexual exploitation and grooming. The number of suspected child sexual exploitation cases Roblox itself reported to the National Center for Missing and Exploited Children (NCMEC) jumped 3,455% from 2019 to 2024.
That’s not all. Schlep — known for targeting alleged predators on Roblox — was banned from the platform and sent a cease and desist letter. Roblox co-founder Matt Kaufman seemed to address Schelp’s ban in a recent post that discussed “vigilante groups” and the “slow approach” the company used to understand their actions.
