Nassau cyber sting nets 21 alleged child predators

An online sting operation run by the Nassau County District Attorney's office resulted in the arrests of 21 suspected child predators. Undercover agents posed online as 13- or 15-year-old girls, District

News 12 Staff

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Sep 6, 2007, 10:31 PM

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Updated 6,340 days ago

An online sting operation run by the Nassau County District Attorney's office resulted in the arrests of 21 suspected child predators.

Undercover agents posed online as 13- or 15-year-old girls, District Attorney Kathleen Rice said. Some suspects asked for cyber sex, while others wanted to meet in person, according to Rice.

"These people watch these shows on TV. They read the newspaper. They see the parade of individuals who get snared in these sting operations and they simply don't care," she said.

For the sting, the district attorney's office rented a house in Merrick, where six of the 21 arrests were made.

According to Rice, not all of the individuals arrested were from Long Island. She said some came from as far away as Maine.

The group of alleged predators includes an accountant, a former Southampton Village official and a Department of Homeland Security Transportation Security Administration agent.

Nassau Cyber Crime Investigator Kathy Roberts warned of how easy it is for predators to reach kids via the Internet.

"You are the parent, you need to know what your child is doing," Roberts said. "These guys are out there. They are just popping up one right after the other."

To watch the complete news conference on the Nassau County district attorney's Internet predator sting, go to channel 612 on your iO digital cable box and select iO Extra.