Sheriff: Sex Crimes Increasing; Internet Makes It Easier

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Oakland County Sheriff Michael Bouchard blamed the Internet for a spike in sex crimes against children in an interview Thursday with a Detroit radio station.

Bouchard was asked by WWJ/Detroit CBS about a series of high-profile sex crime allegations, ranging from the national scandal swirling around former former Subway spokesman Jared Fogle to charges against former Troy marching band instructor Eric Junod, 38, who admitted to swapping at least 100 nude photos of children on an Internet site.

Also this month, Mathew David Kuppe, 21, of West Bloomfield, was arrested on child pornography charges and arraigned in federal court amid allegations that he took nude photos of boys attending a day camp where he formerly worked.

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Bouchard said in the interview with WWJ he thinks sex crimes against children are on the increase “because of the exponential increase of where that contact and how that contact can be made.”

“Instead of the old kind of days when they stood outside of places where kids hung out … I sadly believe that the Internet has proliferated the cases and proliferated the ability for someone with a pedophile inclination to do more damage; to reach out and have more victims,” the sheriff said.

Related:

• West Bloomfield Camp Counselor Faces Child Porn Charges
• Troy Marching Band Director Arrested on Child Porn Charges
• Subway’s Jared Fogle Admits To Sex With Minors, Distributing Child Porn
• Out-of-Compliance Sex Offenders Located in Regional Sweep

Bouchard doubts there are more people with a predilection for such crimes; rather, current technology makes it easier for them to act on their impulses.

Parents need to change how they think about safety zones, he said.

“... It used to be that if a parent had their kids home in their bedroom or in the basement and the doors were locked, basically … they were safe,” Bouchard said. “But now parents never know – even when their kids are home – who they might be talking to real-time, either on a smart phone or on a computer.”

Some possible strategies include limiting kids’ time on the computers and mobile devices, keeping a close eye on them while they’re texting or surfing the web, and moving the computer to a room the entire family uses, such as the kitchen or living room.

Above all else, parents should have candid conversations with their kids about cyber dangers, Bouchard said.

Tell Us:

• Parents, what’s the Internet-use rule in your home? Have you developed strategies that might help other parents?

“You can make it age-appropriate; even down to very, very young children,” he said. “You could say, look, if anyone talks about or attempts to touch you in the area that is covered by your bathing suit … you need to talk to Mommy or Daddy.”

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Photo via Flickr