The mum who catches pedophiles.
Detective Sergeant Kathryn Ford, Brisbane, sitting down at the computer, a message popped up on the screen. It was from a man named Ben*. I'd been introduced to him through someone I'd met online and we were soon chatting for hours. At 33 years old, Ben was friendly and wanted to know all about me. 'Do you want to meet up?' he asked me one night. But this conversation wasn't as it seemed. That's because Ben believed he was talking to a 14-year-old girl named Beth*.
As a covert operative working for the Queensland Police Service, it's my job to pose as underage children online to catch paedophiles before they strike. Working with a special group called Taskforce Argos, our team creates online accounts across social media sites and waits for online predators to make contact.
When a woman named Nancy* started talking to my fake persona, Beth, on a social networking site, I was instantly suspicious. Often pedophiles pretend to be women to gain the trust of young females, before gradually introducing a male friend to the conversation. That's exactly what happened in this case. 'You should chat to my friend, Ben', Nancy suggested. Soon, Ben was messaging me - engaging in sexualised chat and urging me to keep what he was saying secret. We're trained to use teenage language to convince offenders they are speaking to a minor.
So when Ben suggested we meet, I was careful to respond as a 14-year-old would. 'Where u live', I typed. 'Near Toowoomba, but I have a car so I could pick u up', he wrote back. Next Ben suggested I wear a skirt so he could 'teach' me things on the way home.
He suggested we meet at a nearby park...Except the next day Beth wasn't there. Instead we had a team of police officers waiting to arrest and charge Ben when he arrived. He served jail time for the offence and I was pleased one more offender was off the streets. But the shocking reality is that this isn't an isolated case.
On any given day I can be chatting with multiple pedophiles on social media and gaming websites. In one case, we were only chatting for an hour before the male offender tried to arrange a meeting. Meanwhile, other cases can go on for months as pedophiles slowly try and lure in 'the child' by building a friendship to gain their trust.
The lengths some of these criminals will go to is stunning - and horrifying. One offender flew from the ACT to Queensland for what he believed was a meeting with a 14-year-old girl. He was apprehended by police at a motel and charged for the offences. As technology becomes more popular with the younger generation, pedophiles are also becoming more skilled at luring their innocent victims online. Some shower their target with gifts such as telephone credit or iPads in exchange for a pledge of secrecy.
Sex offenders are now even using mobile phone applications and online gaming websites with chat capabilities to contact children. As a mum myself, I am determined to make sure these offenders are caught and that the online space is safe for children. But parents need to be doing their part to keep track of their child's activity online. While you might think it could never happen to your family, pedophiles can be lurking in any online space, ready to target your children. That's why we've started a campaign Who's chatting to your kids? to make people aware of the dangers online. Simple things like checking your child's contacts list or changing their privacy settings can make a big difference. Do you know who your kids are talking to?
--Based on a true-life story.--
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