A California police officer was arrested after a 20-year-old man used the gender-swap filter on Snapchat to pretend to be a 16-year-old girl and patrol for child predators.
Ethan, who declined to give his last name for fear of retaliation, told police that he wanted to pursue some vigilante justice after learning that his female friend was molested as a child, according to NBC Bay Area.
UPDATE: Just last month, @SanMateoPD lauded Officer Robert Davies for graduating from a leadership program. Today he was arrested by @SanJosePD for allegedly discussing engaging in sexual activity w/tipster posing as teen girl on @tinder @kik & @Snapchat pic.twitter.com/XSEhcS5yEf
— Henry K. Lee (@henrykleeKTVU) June 7, 2019
The Snapchat filter is designed to make men appear as women when a photo is taken, and vice versa. After snapping the picture, Ethan took to Tinder posing as “Esther” and began to look for pedophiles to expose.
He received a message from San Mateo police officer Robert Davies who allegedly asked “Esther” if she was “down to have some fun tonight?”
After an exchange of messages, Davies and Ethan moved the conversation to another app where Ethan told Davies that he was 16 and asked if that bothered him. Police, who have seen screenshots of the conversation, said that the age didn’t bother Davies.
Davies was arrested last week by San Jose Police and faces a charge of contacting a minor to commit a felony.
“I was just looking to get someone,” Ethan said. “He just happened to be a cop.”
He used Snapchat’s “gender switch” filter to pose as a 16-year-old girl online, and take down a police officer allegedly looking to hook up. He tipped off the PD, and the officer was arrested.
Our exclusive interview with the man, and why he did it, at 11 on @nbcbayarea pic.twitter.com/VaGtg14uLL— Ian Cull (@NBCian) June 11, 2019
Davies, who recently won an award for leadership, was placed on paid administrative leave and San Mateo Police Chief Susan Manheimer released a statement regarding Davies’ arrest.
“This alleged conduct, if true, is in no way a reflection of all that we stand for as a Department, and is an affront to the tenets of our department and our profession as a whole,” the statement read. “As San Mateo police officers, we have sworn an oath to serve and protect our communities.”
