Parents' Facebook Sting Leads to Arrest of Sex Offender Dating Their Daughter
The parents of a girl have set up a Facebook sting to help catch a 19-year-old registered sex offender who was dating their daughter.
The sex offender was arrested in Skagit County after parents, Jesper and Julie Myrfors, felt concerned about their daughter's boyfriend.
Jesper said, "We just thought she was getting into a dangerous situation," according to NBC News.
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"When I met him, he was totally charming, really likable," said Julie.
Boyfriend William Elms, was dating their 17-year-old daughter, who was two years his junior.
After a bit of research the parents found that their daughter's boyfriend was in fact a registered sex offender, confirming their worst fears. Julie has advised other parents: "When there's a question, follow it. Find the answer for your kids," said Julie.
The parents decided to set up a sting on Facebook. Julie explained: "Why not make a Facebook and create a girl?"
"When we did this, we had rules. We were not trying to entrap him. We were setting him up a situation where, if he was a bad guy, he could act on it," said Jesper.
And act on it he did. Following making contact the young man started sending explicit messages and even pictures to the fake Facebook account.
"My daughter didn't know we had done this. I invited her on to begin watching live. She started watching conversations on our fake little person," said Julie."The hardest part as a parent was watching her heart break."
The parents decided to report the sex offender to the Sedro-Woolley police, and he was arrested at the Snohomish County Jail, where he was serving time for a probation violation. He is now facing charges of Immoral Conduct with a Minor.
