‘Predator hunters’ lure man to Collinsville grade school to shame him on Facebook
It’s nothing new for “predator hunters” to pose as teenage girls on the internet, arrange to meet adult men looking for sex, show up to confront them and post incriminating videos on Facebook or YouTube.
They see it as a high-tech way to expose and shame would-be child molesters.
But Collinsville Unit School District 10 officials were disturbed to learn that one of these sting-like operations took place Monday night in the parking lot of Webster Elementary School.
The target was a Missouri man who apparently thought he was meeting a 13-year-old girl. Instead, he faced two members of the metro-east group KTS Predator Hunters. They interrogated and reprimanded him for about 10 minutes as video cameras recorded the scene.
“This group had no involvement, agreement or communication with the school district or local law enforcement before, during or after this occurred,” Superintendent Brad Skertich said Thursday. “They were completely on their own.”
The group posted the video Tuesday on the Facebook page of its non-profit organization, KTS: Stop Sexual Assault, which has more than 42,000 followers.
No actual children were involved, Skertich said, but he sent an email to Collinsville parents and guardians on Wednesday, letting them know what happened.
Skertich called the incident “alarming” and noted that the district had contacted Collinsville Police Department to help it determine how to move forward in light of the Missouri man’s actions and the KTS group’s decision to lure a “potentially dangerous adult” onto school property. He also urged parental guidance.
“The situation serves as a harsh reminder that we must regularly monitor our children’s internet and phone usage, discuss safe and unsafe practices, and have regular conversations about who they communicate with throughout the day,” Skertich wrote.
Showing the ‘ugly truth’
In a Facebook post, KTS explained that the Webster operation was set for 8 p.m. Monday so no students would be present.
“There was a bunch of thought that went into the planning of this bust,” the post read. “... We showed up over an hour early and monitored to make sure once again no children were around. We wanted to do it at this location to show the ‘Ugly Truth.’ These guys will show up ANYWHERE!”
On Friday, KTS leader T.J. Pfleger said the group had gotten pushback from some people about the location, and that he understood their concern, but the goal is to expose predators, including those gutsy enough to visit a school.
The KTS video named the Missouri man and his hometown. The BND isn’t providing this information because he hasn’t been charged with a crime.
Collinsville Police Department didn’t know about the Webster operation until school district officials reported it, according to Major Brett Boerm.
The department had heard about a meeting last year between KTS and Madison County State’s Attorney Tom Gibbons, who reportedly asked the group to start telling police about contacts with suspected child molesters instead of taking matters into their own hands so proper investigations could lead to criminal charges.
The St. Louis Post-Dispatch reported in 2019 that a handful of men had been arrested after being confronted by KTS Predator Hunters or members of a St. Louis group called Truckers Against Predators, but most of those cases were dropped.
“Some local law enforcement officials (said the groups) create volatile situations that should be left to trained professionals, and unleash a form of mob justice that’s hard to control,” the Post reported.
Neither KTS nor the Missouri man involved in the Webster operation are under investigation by Collinsville police, Boerm said Thursday.
Inspired by TV series
Predator-hunting groups can be found all over the country. Some were inspired by “To Catch a Predator,” a reality TV series that was part of NBC’s “Dateline” from 2004 to 2007. But police were involved in most of its episodes.
K, T and S are the initials of the local group’s three leaders, including founder Kyle Swanson, of Alton, an Army veteran who sports a black baseball cap, bushy beard and several tattoos.
In the video shot at Webster, Swanson and another KTS member cross the parking lot while a third person shoots video. They walk up to the middle-age Missouri man, who has salt-and-pepper hair and a T-shirt that reads “Cancun, Mexico.” He doesn’t deny arranging to meet with someone he thought was 13 years old.
“You were about to rape a girl,” Swanson says. “That’s what you were doing. You can say you weren’t here to do that, but that’s what you were here to do.”
Swanson tells the man that having sex with a minor is a felony, that he could be paying for the rest of his life, that the last suspect Swanson investigated went to jail and that he plans to contact police from the man’s hometown and ask them to question him.
The other KTS member notes that 12,000 people are watching the discussion live on the internet. The man insists he wasn’t going to commit a crime.
“I just got divorced, and I just wanted to talk to (the girl),” he says. “... I wasn’t going to have sex with her. I can’t even have sex.”
Swanson asks if the man has ever been arrested before. His response is indecipherable.
The man seems groggy at times and lifts his shirt to reveal a large bulge in his stomach before telling Swanson he needs to take his medicine. He allows Swanson, who had raised concerns about the man having a weapon, to reach into his car and retrieve a small black bag. The man digs out a syringe and gives himself a shot in the armpit.
A few minutes later, Swanson tells the man that he doesn’t look well and he should go home. The man thanks the KTS members, gets in his car and waves as he drives away.
“I won’t do it again,” he said.
This story was originally published September 18, 2020 at 8:12 AM with the headline "‘Predator hunters’ lure man to Collinsville grade school to shame him on Facebook."
