An online group that conducts undercover operations targeting suspected child predators confronted a man in Southwest Virginia this week, an encounter that the group says resulted in his arrest.
Alex Rosen, founder of Predator Poachers, said members of the group pose as children online and communicate with adults who allegedly send inappropriate or sexually explicit messages. Members then confront the adults and provide information gathered during their investigations to law enforcement.
Earlier this week, Rosen and other members of the group traveled to Abingdon , Virginia, to confront Marc Gardner.
Rosen said Gardner acknowledged that the online accounts involved in the group’s investigation belonged to him.
“He admitted and verified that these were his accounts and that he was doing this,” Rosen said. “He said he’s talked to seven to eight children on that app alone.”
Video posted on the Predator Poachers Facebook page shows Gardner being taken into custody by the Washington County Sheriff’s Office.
Rosen said his group has conducted about 80 such operations since the beginning of June and has traveled to 25 states this year.
“Now we have arrests in all 50 states,” Rosen said. “So it’s important because this can happen in any corner of the country.”
Rosen said parents can help protect children by monitoring their online activity and talking with them about potential dangers.
“It’s a very prevalent problem, but it can be stopped with awareness and, obviously, parents monitoring what their kids are doing online,” Rosen said.
Predator Poachers works with law enforcement by turning over information its members collect during their online communications and confrontations, Rosen said.
“The vast majority of our cases get prosecuted,” Rosen said. “We have everything kind of in a bundle for them ready to go.”
Rosen said the group has been involved in cases resulting in 363 convictions.
Rosen also thanked law enforcement agencies in Southwest Virginia for working with the group, including the Washington County Sheriff’s Office and Bristol Virginia Police Department.
Bristol police said one of the best ways to protect children from online sexual predators is to keep them off social media. If children are using social media, officers encourage parents to monitor their phones and talk with them about safe online behavior.
