FRANKLIN, Va. — Chatrooms. They seem like a thing of the past, right?
They still exist along with the danger that comes with them.
A Canadian man has been arrested and charged for crimes related to the sexual exploitation of a Franklin 14-year-old he met in an online chat room.
Christopher Merner, 52, of Ontario, Canada, was taken in custody Tuesday for violating the criminal codes of Canada by luring a child, making sexually explicit material available to a child and indecent communications, according to a release from Franklin Police.
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After receiving notice from the National Center for Missing and Exploited Children (NCMEC), the Franklin Police Department and Southern Virginia Internet Crimes Against Children (ICAC) Task Force interviewed the victim who said they were in an online chat room when they got messaged by an older man, according to police. The teen told him their age; the man sent photos of his genitals, then requested similar images from the victim.
Franklin police say they contacted INTERPOL officials, who notified Canadian authorities. The Canadian Waterloo Regional Police Service executed a search warrant for Merner's house.
Merner is in custody with a bail hearing pending.
The Southern Virginia ICAC Task Force has parental resources to aid in talking to children about internet safety here.
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Len Gonzales, the founder of Ally Cyber Investigations, LLC,said parents need to know what their kids are doing on the internet.
"You've got to have an open door policy with your children and speak about what's out there," Gonzales said. "You can get involved in chat rooms, you can get involved in gaming, and each one of those presents its own kind of monster."
He said chatrooms are equivalent to playgrounds, where predators might hang out.
"Generally where children are at that's where perpetrators are going to be," he said.
Gonzales said parents need to set rules and boundaries for their kids.
"Making sure that they don't take their phones to their bedrooms late at night," he said. "That they don't take their phones into the restroom."
