Police say man lured Kauai teen to Mainland
By Diana Leone and Will Hoover
Advertiser Staff Writers
LIHU'E, Kaua'i — Quick action by Kaua'i police kept a 16-year-old girl from flying to Oklahoma to meet a man she'd met on the Internet.
The girl's grandparents, with whom she lives, reported her as a runaway early Saturday morning in a case that highlights the challenges of raising vulnerable, computer-savvy grandchildren.
The officer taking the runaway complaint quickly found out that the girl had been dropped at the Lihu'e Airport by a friend and boarded a 6:30 a.m. Hawaiian Airlines flight to Honolulu Saturday and then an 8:10 a.m. United Airlines flight to Los Angeles, said Kaua'i Police Chief Darryl Perry.
The girl's plan was to take another flight via Denver to Oklahoma City, on tickets the man had bought for her, Perry said.
Police in Los Angeles were able to intercept the girl as she left the plane there, using a photograph e-mailed by Kaua'i police, Perry said. Last night, she remained in the custody of California's Child & Welfare Protective Services in Los Angeles, and arrangements were being made to return her to Kaua'i.
Although it's unclear if the girl's grandparents were aware of the extent of her activities online, many say there are particular hurdles in this area in raising grandchildren.
"I think there is a learning curve for a lot of grandparents who raise their grandchildren," said Bruce Bottorff, associate state director of AARP. "They need to catch up on their computer skills. And often they are not aware of the kinds of dangers that may be lurking in the cyber world that they should be better informed about."
Kaua'i police will be working with the state Internet Crimes Against Children task force, spearheaded by the state attorney general's office, to investigate the incident, Perry said. That work will involve forensic exams of the computers used by the girl and by the alleged perpetrator, he said.
Bottorff said a high percentage of grandparents in Hawai'i are now raising their grandchildren. AARP statistics in Hawai'i show that some 13 percent of children younger than 18 live in households headed by their grandparents.
More than 14,000 grandparents in Hawai'i are responsible for grandchildren in their care, according to state and national data.
"You can imagine how difficult it is for grandparents just to monitor the real-world comings and goings of your grandchildren, let alone what they are doing in that whole new world of cyber reality," said Bottorff.
Na Tutu, a coalition of grandparent caregivers and various agencies serving kinship-care families, has voiced concerns about the high-tech disparity between grandparents and their grandkids, said coalition member Helen Wagner.
"We're aware that it is a big problem," said Wagner, who with her husband, Jeff, has cared for their 13-year-old granddaughter since she was a baby.
"One thing we've got to educate the grandparents (about is) not to be intimidated about asking questions because a lot of the teenagers have the attitude, 'This is my business,' " Wagner said. "But the grandparents need answers."
One idea Na Tutu is exploring is developing a program in which youthful grandchildren themselves would bring their grandparent caregivers up to date on everything from the Internet to text-messaging to Twittering, Wagner said.
The program might be a partnership with the Hawai'i Intergenerational Network, a resource for programs aimed at mutually benefiting seniors and young people that Jeff Wagner leads.
At home, the Wagners have blocked the Internet from their granddaughter's bedroom computer, but she is free to use the Internet on a computer in the living room.
Perry said the suspect in the Kaua'i case will ultimately face charges of first-degree electronic enticement of a child, a Class "B" felony. He said he was not sure yesterday evening whether the man had been arrested.
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Keeping your child safe on the internet
Here are Internet safety tips posted on the Hawai'i Internet Crimes Against Children Web site, http://hawaii.gov/ag/hicac:
• Know the services your child uses and if there are built-in ways to block objectionable material.
• Have your child use a pseudonym and keep account unlisted; steer away from online profiles, which pedophiles often use to find victims.
• Never allow a child to arrange a face-to-face meeting with another computer user without permission. If a meeting is arranged, make the first meeting in a public place and accompany your child to the meeting.
• Do not allow your child to respond to messages or bulletin board items that are suggestive, obscene, belligerent or threatening. Forward a copy of such messages to your Internet service provider.
• Call the National Center for Missing and Exploited Children at 800-843-5678 if you are aware of the transmission, use, or viewing of child pornography online.
• Never give out any personal information such as your address, telephone numbers or the name of your child’s school.
• Keep the computer in your family room where you can watch and monitor your child’s activities.
• Share an e-mail account with your child so that you can oversee his or her e-mail.
• Spend time online together to show your children proper behavior and rules.
• Do not allow your children to participate in private chat rooms without you being present.
• Monitor your credit card bill. Many pornographic Internet sites require credit card payments for access.
• Consider using an online service that has special child accounts with restricted access to chat rooms and the Internet.
• Always keep in mind that as you move through the Internet, you leave information about yourself. When a user posts to USENET.IRC chat rooms or listservers, the user reveals their mailing address so others can contact them. Some Web sites also leave information on and retrieve it from a computer in the form of “cookies.” “Cookies” are compiled lists of information that may include your name, address, telephone number, and possibly even your credit card number. Ask your Internet service provider how to turn off cookies on your Internet browser. |
Reach Diana Leone at dleone@honoluluadvertiser.com and Will Hoover at whoover@honoluluadvertiser.com.
