Tacoma police arrest man accused of trying to meet 13-year-old for sex
AI-generated summary reviewed by our newsroom.
- A man was arrested in Tacoma on May 1 for communicating with a minor for immoral purposes.
- He communicated with Predator Poachers decoys for four months before arranging a meetup.
- Suspect was released on May 4 after posting $50,000 bail; prosecutors await information.
A Federal Way man was arrested in Tacoma earlier this month for trying to meet up with a 13-year-old for sex.
The man was booked into jail on May 1, according to the Pierce County jail roster, on suspicion of one count of communicating with a minor for immoral purposes. He was released on May 4 with a $50,000 bail.
Adam Faber, spokesperson for the Pierce County Prosecuting Attorney’s Office, said in an email to The News Tribune the office has requested additional information from the Tacoma Police Department.
“That case is open with no charges filed at this point,” Faber wrote.
Shelbie Boyd, spokesperson for TPD, told The News Tribune that the group Predator Poachers Washington was involved in the man’s arrest at Wapato Park. The group is an affiliate of the online watchdog group Predator Poachers, where adult volunteers pretend to be children online in order to catch predators in the act.
The News Tribune spoke to Jody Cook, 37, who is the head of Predator Poachers Washington, which spoke to the man online and called the police. He said the man, who lives in Federal Way, reached out to two decoys the group had on a pornography website, one posing as a father and the other posing as a 13-year-old boy.
The man had allegedly posted an advertisement saying he wanted to fulfill “a real dad/son fantasy,” and then reached out to both of the decoys in January.
“He explained what he wanted to do with the father and son, which was meet up and have sex,” Cook said.
Cook said the man communicated with the decoy for four months, before arranging to meet at Wapato Park.
He allegedly also sent the decoys explicit pictures and racist statements, saying he wanted to find a Black man and kill him.
