Click Here

Cary police probing possible Internet sex crimes

Cary police seized computer equipment from an apartment as part of an Internet sex crime investigation.

Cary police said Tuesday they have at least one suspect in a sex crimes investigation involving the Internet and a 12-year-old Sanford boy reported missing last month.

According to search warrants returned Tuesday, the 21-year-old suspect met and chatted with the boy on MySpace, picked him up near his home in Sanford and took him back to Cary, where they went to dinner and a movie before going back to the suspect's apartment.

The boy fell asleep on a couch and awoke with a man "sucking on his neck," investigators said in search warrant affidavits.

About an hour after the boy's mother called the suspect's phone number, which was an unfamiliar number on her cell phone, the boy returned home with a hickey on his neck; a juvenile-certified sexual assault nurse examiner also found a hickey on the boy's body, the warrant stated.

Police, however, have not made any arrests in the case and are looking further into a sexually oriented online community where young men are paid to perform sexual acts.

During their investigation on July 24 of the boy's disappearance, the suspect told investigators at his apartment that he performed sexual acts via a Web cam for their primary source of income.

That prompted investigators to apply for search warrants, in which they seized five computer hard drives, a DVD, a digital camera and two memory cards from the apartment.

Cary police say the case is unusual and that they are also investigating potential customers of the suspect who were paying for his time online.

"We're consulting with the Wake County DA's office about the case and keeping them apprised of the situation," Cary police Capt. Michael Williams said.

Linda Criddle, an online safety expert who worked for MSN and Windows Live, said the boy's apparent willingness to meet with the suspect was a sign of trust.

"Unfortunately, it's not uncommon, and the kids who are the most risk are the youth," she said. "A predator spends a lot of time building trust – a lot of trust and thought on how to build that trust and nothing in the time it takes to destroy it."



31 Comments


Golo

Welcome to GOLO, where WRAL.com visitors can comment on stories and create profile pages, blogs and photo galleries.

You must be a registered WRAL.com user to use these tools. Click here to register or log in.

View Comments View Comments

Report It
Send us your news photos, videos, tips and story ideas.
Submit Videos Submit Photos Submit Reports
  1. World News:  BERLIN WALL
    Photo: Fall of the Berlin Wall

    The 28-year-old Cold War symbol along East Germany's fortified border crumbled on the evening of Nov. 9, 1989, a pivotal moment in the collapse of…

  2. Bragg homecoming_01
    Fort Bragg homecoming

    The 82nd Airborne's 3rd Brigade Combat Team, or Panther Brigade, is coming home after a year-long deployment to Iraq. Families greeted 200…

  3. vet 01
    N.C. honors veterans with parades

    North Carolina honored veterans Saturday with annual parades in Raleigh and Fayetteville and a ceremony at the State Capitol building.

  4. APTOPIX Austria Weather
    Photos of the week

    The snow-covered Wilder Kaiser, part of the Alps, is reflected in Lake Schwarzsee in Austria. It's among the best photos taken by Associated Press…

  5. BRITAIN_ELTON__JOHN
    The week in entertainment

    A look at the top entertainment headlines this week through the lenses of Associated Press photographers.

Click Here