Man Arrested for Online Sexual Corruption of a Child Charges
Benton Co. Sheriff's Office
CORVALLIS, Ore. – On April 22, 2020, The Benton County Sheriff’s Office arrested Rolan Harvey Meyers, 35 of Albany, after knowingly soliciting a 15-year-old female child online, where he took substantial steps to engage in sexual contact with the girl.
Predators target children for sexual purposes on social media, gaming, and messaging platforms. As more children are home on digital devices and completing online school due to the COVID-19 pandemic lockdown, children will potentially have an increased exposure to more predators flocking to sites that are popular with kids according to a recent FBI press release.
With this information, Benton County Sheriff Detectives, posing as a minor child, posted to a local online service on April 15, 2020. During the course of the conversation that followed, Meyers sent multiple text messages to the undercover account and was told she was only 15 years old several times.
This morning Meyers suggested meeting up with the girl after asking if both the girl’s parents were gone. Meyers was on his way to meet her when Benton County Deputies stopped him in Corvallis.
They took him into custody and transported him to the Benton County Jail where he was booked and lodged on charges of Luring a Minor, Online Sexual Corruption of a Child I, Online Sexual Corruption of a Child II and attempted Using Child in Display of Sexually Explicit Conduct.
After Meyers’ arrest today, Captain Don Rogers stated, “At this time when our children are spending more time online, it is even more important we identify and hold accountable those individuals who choose to prey on our children. We encourage parents to have open and ongoing conversations about safe and appropriate online behavior, not just during our pandemic, but also when the Stay Home, Save Lives order is lifted.”
Other advice from the FBI, including privacy settings for electronic devices, is located at https://www.fbi.gov/scams-and-safety/protecting-your-kids.
The Benton County Sheriff’s Office encourages the public to report any suspected online enticement of children for sexual acts to the National Center for Missing & Exploited Children (NCMEC) at http://CyberTipline.org or 1-800-843-5678. NCMEC continuously reviews CyberTipline reports to ensure that reports of children who may be in imminent danger get first priority. After NCMEC’s review is completed, all information in a CyberTipline report is made available to law enforcement.
CORVALLIS, Ore. – On April 22, 2020, The Benton County Sheriff’s Office arrested Rolan Harvey Meyers, 35 of Albany, after knowingly soliciting a 15-year-old female child online, where he took substantial steps to engage in sexual contact with the girl.
Predators target children for sexual purposes on social media, gaming, and messaging platforms. As more children are home on digital devices and completing online school due to the COVID-19 pandemic lockdown, children will potentially have an increased exposure to more predators flocking to sites that are popular with kids according to a recent FBI press release.
With this information, Benton County Sheriff Detectives, posing as a minor child, posted to a local online service on April 15, 2020. During the course of the conversation that followed, Meyers sent multiple text messages to the undercover account and was told she was only 15 years old several times.
This morning Meyers suggested meeting up with the girl after asking if both the girl’s parents were gone. Meyers was on his way to meet her when Benton County Deputies stopped him in Corvallis.
They took him into custody and transported him to the Benton County Jail where he was booked and lodged on charges of Luring a Minor, Online Sexual Corruption of a Child I, Online Sexual Corruption of a Child II and attempted Using Child in Display of Sexually Explicit Conduct.
After Meyers’ arrest today, Captain Don Rogers stated, “At this time when our children are spending more time online, it is even more important we identify and hold accountable those individuals who choose to prey on our children. We encourage parents to have open and ongoing conversations about safe and appropriate online behavior, not just during our pandemic, but also when the Stay Home, Save Lives order is lifted.”
Other advice from the FBI, including privacy settings for electronic devices, is located at https://www.fbi.gov/scams-and-safety/protecting-your-kids.
The Benton County Sheriff’s Office encourages the public to report any suspected online enticement of children for sexual acts to the National Center for Missing & Exploited Children (NCMEC) at http://CyberTipline.org or 1-800-843-5678. NCMEC continuously reviews CyberTipline reports to ensure that reports of children who may be in imminent danger get first priority. After NCMEC’s review is completed, all information in a CyberTipline report is made available to law enforcement.
Comments
Post a Comment