Oklahoma Dad Carries Out Sting To Catch Alleged Sexual Predator
CBS - An Oklahoma father carried out an elaborate sting to catch an alleged sexual predator who he said was targeting his 15-year-old daughter.
Police said Jeremy Dewayne Gibson searched out the girl online and went to her home to have sex with her, but when he arrived, her family tackled him to the ground.
Surveillance footage captured the encounter.
The father, who didn't want us to reveal his name, said when he went to the police, they told him they couldn't really do anything until the suspect actually showed up. So he decided he would handle it himself.
When Gibson arrived at the home around 12:30 a.m. he was tackled to the ground by the father and two other men. His hands and feet were bound with zip ties.
The teenage girl he allegedly thought was in the tent was actually a grown woman.
When asked if he considered the risks, the father replied that possible injuries paled in comparison to catching the suspect.
"The thought did cross my mind, yes, very much so. But the situation outweighed those thoughts," he said.
Gibson allegedly began recently sending Facebook messages and nude pictures to his daughter.
"Do you think he knew she was 15?" CBS's David Begnaud asked.
"Yes. Yes I do," the father said.
"Do you think your daughter understands what she was opening herself up to?" Begnaud asked.
"I don't think she did. I do think she does now," he responded.
The father was apparently tipped off to his daughter's online chats through an app he was using called FamilyTime, which enabled him to monitor her cell phone.
The father filed a police report. Later that day, he saw messages indicating Gibson was meeting his daughter at the family's house that night. So the dad hatched the plan to make a citizen's arrest.
"I told him that he stepped into the wrong backyard, and he messed with the wrong little girl," the father recounted.
Gibson was charged with one count of using technology to engage in sexual communication with a minor.
"We never encourage people to take the law into their own hands. That's what we're paid to take risks for," said Del City police Maj. Jody Suit.
Gibson allegedly told police he came to the girl's home just to talk to her and point out the error of her ways. He is now out on $15,000 bond.