CABARRUS COUNTY, N.C. — Online predators are targeting children every day in the United States -- Channel 9 got an inside look with an undercover operation to find these predators, and it turned out that we didn’t have to go far to find adults accused of soliciting children online.
Our team followed Cabarrus County deputies as they tracked down and arrested the accused predators. Now, nine men are under arrest.
The evidence collected in these cases paints a scary picture of the “what-ifs” that could happen to victims. Investigators found guns, drugs, condoms, and treats or gifts for the child that these men thought they were meeting.
It’s work that can be disgusting at times, but every arrest means one less predator.
How it starts
It can take just hours for a child to meet a predator after they first make contact online. It often begins with a simple action.
“Sometimes we’ll just start liking their picture, and then they message us from there, and it’s game on,” said Det. Alley Shackleford.
Shackleford investigates human trafficking and child exploitation cases for Cabarrus County. She’s a “chatter,” meaning she talks to online predators who think the detectives are children.
“Part of it is to do this full-time, so it may be just a regular Tuesday morning and we go pick up a guy, but it’s nothing for me to log onto a site and pick up a guy anytime we want,” Shackleford said.
They use social media sites and apps like the ones your kids likely have access to. They use accounts that look like they’re girls and boys aged 15 and under living in Cabarrus County.
The investigators don’t message first, your child might not either. Often it doesn’t take long for an adult on the other end of the screen to start a conversation.
Channel 9’s Hannah Goetz saw it in real time.
“He’s just asking how are you doing, I’m saying ‘good, nice to meet you,’ [and] asking location,” Shackleford said while pointing at text messages with a potential predator. “I give him my location, I say hey how old are you, he states his age is 48.”
Shackleford says they give them a specific age.
“Whether it’s 12, 13, 14, 15, maybe younger. They know immediately how old the child is that they are communicating with,” Shackleford said.
Chatters frequently bring up the age they’re pretending to be.
“So this guy’s just saying he’s 50 years old, asking me how old I am. [I’m] telling him I’m 15, and we’ll see what he says ... we can get him sending that, and we are able to ID who he is,” Shackleford said.
“Thirty-three years old, Kannapolis, North Carolina - see what you can find with that,” Shackleford told a colleague.
The adults on the other end of this conversation think they are talking to a child.
“[He’s asking] where do you work? And then our undercover saying, ‘I’m still in school right now, honestly,’” Shackleford said. “He’s wanting to hang out when nhe gets off of work, he knows my mom works from 3 p.m. to 3 a.m.”
The suspect on the other end asked for a photo. Shackleford said they have a folder with pictures of decoys that they use to send to the suspected predators.
Shackleford says no matter how innocent it may seem, there’s no such thing as innocent when an adult is soliciting a minor. We watched as the conversations started crossing a line.
“So like with this guy ... he immediately asked how old I was and I told him, then they’ll say, ‘Oh never mind have a good day,’ and then you’re kind of like ‘What am I too young?’ And you go back and forth, then they’ll ask for pictures of your face or pictures of children ... then he’s talking about like what piercings do you have?” Shackleford said.
Before long, the man on the other end began asking for details about what this child would do to him sexually.
Conversations quickly turn from “When are your parents coming home?” to explicit.
“He sent a video of a girl [performing a sexual act] and she asked, ‘Do you want that to be me? Is that what you want me to do when you come over?’ He said, ‘Yeah,’” Shackleford said, reading the conversation.
When the adult clearly expresses intent to commit sexual acts with who they believe to be a child, it meets the criteria for the charge of online exploitation of a minor.
“He’s saying I can’t do that, I could get in a lot of trouble, and that’s how he knows he’s going to get in trouble,” Shackleford said. “These guys truly believe they are going to meet a child for sex, that’s what they are showing up to do, and that’s what makes these cases a lot more concerning.”
Once they have a man start talking about sex, they start doing background research to figure out who he is and where he’s from.
That’s when another part of the team steps into the investigation.
Catching the predators
“What are you doing tomorrow?” a man says over the phone.
“I mean, whatever you want me to do,” a detective responds, pretending to be a child.
During this operation, the Cabarrus County Sheriff’s Office arrested nine men for the crime of soliciting a child by computer. The men ranged in age from their early 20s to their 50s. Their hometowns: Concord to Salisbury, Charlotte, and Monroe.
For some, the communication went beyond the computer. They showed up expecting to meet with a child for sex.
Shackleford told Goetz the earlier messages were from Shaquan Hill. He’s from Concord and has a history with law enforcement.
“I’ve personally arrested him,” one deputy said.
Goetz joined the deputies down the road from a decoy house, where Lt. Chris Smith says Hill believes a 15-year-old girl is waiting for him.
“Alright, target just passed back, should be at the target address in just a second,” Smith said.
Instead, Hill was greeted by deputies. He took off running.
“He’s throwing stuff out the window,” a deputy said on the radio.
“He’s right here, he’s on the ground,” another deputy called out.
Investigators say among the items they found on him were a condom, and a drink for the child he thought he was meeting.
“That [condom] shows his intention when he got there,” investigators said.
“When they do arrive, a lot of them will show up with drugs, alcohol, something to drug the child with to commit sexual acts with,” Smith said. “Sometimes they show up with a video camera or some type of device to record a child on ... which is a separate charge, too.”
We saw that over and over in the investigation. Suspects brought condoms, drugs, cash, and even guns.
“There is no reason why somebody should show up to meet a child with an assault rifle,” Smith said.
Meanwhile, back at the decoy house, a 25-year-old was set to approach after talking to a detective over the last two days. He thought he was meeting a 15-year-old.
“So they’re keeping cover on the target, and then you’ll see this team move up and clear the vehicle,” Smith said.
The suspect told investigators he’s from Concord and that he plays soccer for a pro development league.
But detectives say they know their work is far from over.
“Our biggest goal with these cases after they’re arrested, we want these guys on the registry, we want them held accountable, we want the public to see they are officially a sex offender in this community and hold them accountable for what they’ve done,” they said.
Their work means fewer threats on the street. The problem is the next one is never far behind.
“Thank God he’s meeting an undercover officer -- what if this was your child and without protection, and this monster who’s 58-years-old chatting online for his own sexual gratification comes and meets this child today,” Shackleford said. “I’m just thankful that we’re here to intercept that.”
The Lantern Project is a local organization based out of Concord that helps fight human trafficking, and provides resources for those affected by trafficking and sexual exploitation. You can learn more about them and how you can get involved at this link.
(VIDEO: Channel 9 joins undercover investigation to catch online predators targeting children)
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