Grandmother Tracks Internet Predators

[Tux of Borg]

http://www.nwaonline.net/articles/2005/04/...rs/01zelpha.txt

 

EUGENE WILLIAMS , THE MORNING NEWS

By Don Dailey

 

The Morning NewsWhen 44-year-old Steven G. Willard discovered FancyDancer 14 on the Internet, she was just what he was looking for -- young, lonely and open to his advances.

 

Willard, using the screen name Slikesw, wooed FancyDancer with compliments over the course of three months. He told her she was sweet, cute and mature for her age. He empathized with her despair over having moved to another state. When she complained about the sexual advances of her neglectful mother's latest boyfriend, Willard came to her defense, saying he would beat up the boyfriend if he got the chance.

 

He revealed his real name during their first messaging session, said he lived in Washington state and sent a sexually explicit photo. He also lied about his age. He said he was 39.

 

He told her in graphic language from the very beginning he wanted to have sex with her.

 

For her part, FancyDancer 14 was a little ditzy but made it clear even though she was 13, she was interested in sex. She called him her boyfriend. She sent him a picture of herself. She did not recoil at Willard's suggestions they have sex.

 

FancyDancer encouraged him when Willard broached the subject of visiting Arkansas to see her. She told him her mother often went to Tunica on gambling junkets, leaving her alone.

 

She even suggested he could stay at a nearby motel.

 

She didn't tell Willard the police would be waiting.

 

'I Was Unaware'

 

FancyDancer 14 is not 13. Her real name is Zelpha Long, and she keeps her real age to herself but admits to being a grandmother. She has posed online since August as a 13-year-old girl to gather evidence on would-be pedophiles.

 

Her efforts have resulted in the arrests of five men, including Willard. Willard pleaded guilty in federal court in Harrison on April 5 to one count each of attempting to entice a juvenile to travel with intent to engage in a sexual act, and the interstate transport of child pornography. He hasn't been sentenced.

 

Some local police departments have supported and even welcomed her involvement, but some in law enforcement think her avocation imperils her safety and could put her on the wrong side of the law.

 

Long is short and plump with big eyeglasses and an easy smile. She laughs often and calls strangers "Honey." Her frosted hair, big hoop earrings and love of Kid Rock make it clear she believes age is only a number. She smokes Salem 100s and has the raspy voice to prove it.

 

A former police officer and private investigator, Long has had to be tough at times. She doesn't hesitate to repeat the salty language she sees from men stalking teenagers online.

 

Long initially thought it would be difficult to get a pedophile to respond to her alter ego. She was shocked when it happened the first time she went online as FancyDancer 14.

 

"I've never had anything stun me quite as badly as this did," she said.

 

She got interested in duping online predators after seeing a talk-show episode last summer about people outside of law enforcement who were doing it.

 

A guest on the show suggested viewers create an online profile of a 13-year-old girl or boy to get an idea of how aggressive Internet pedophiles can be. Long was flabbergasted at what she received within two minutes: dozens of instant messages from adults wanting to befriend her teenage persona.

 

"I was unaware, like most people are unaware."

 

Keeping the two messages that looked to be the most promising, including Willard's, Long cleared her screen of all the responses. It took 15 minutes.

 

She backed off to consider if she wanted to continue when it became obvious she had something going.

 

"Before I start this I want to make sure I can handle it," she recalled thinking.

 

Learning Curve

 

Long was in law enforcement for 15 years in Benton County and then worked as a private investigator. She and her husband, Alan, bought a monthly newspaper in Carroll County in 1987 and sold it in 1998.

 

Long wanted to get involved in some type of community service and considered volunteering in the schools, the local hospital or a nursing home. Those didn't seem to fit her style.

 

Hunting child molesters on the Internet would be a different way to help the community, she figured, and it appealed to her police instincts.

 

"It gives me something to do before I leave that makes a difference," she said.

 

She made the commitment and studied what techniques to use online to make her 13-year-old characters more authentic. With no experience with instant messaging, Long found it difficult to sound like a real teenager. The slang terms she came up with on her own sounded fine to her but appalled her 16-year-old grandson.

 

"He came over and looked at something I'd written and said 'No, Mamaw, no."

 

She had shortened the word "computer" to "puter," which her grandson said was not something a 13-year-old girl would say.

 

With the help of her grandson and two teenage girls from her church, Long learned the language of the chat rooms and instant messaging. She molds her 13-year-old characters to fit the situation. FancyDancer is bold. She's not a virgin. She knows plenty about sex, and she's not scared by blatant suggestions.

 

Another character might be timid, professing little knowledge of sex but willing to go along to make a friend.

 

Long has also learned about the different styles of the men she has encountered online. Some, like Willard, use profanity and hard-core-sex talk. Others are very careful not to say anything that might frighten their intended victim.

 

They all are looking for needy kids with vulnerabilities ripe for exploitation, she said.

 

Getting Results

 

Long had her first arrest within two months. Douglas Wade Burns, 34, of Oklahoma City, a middle school teacher, was arrested by the U.S. Marshals Service. He has been charged in Carroll County with violating the state's computer child pornography statute, a Class B felony.

 

Long won't talk about the details of her chats with Burns because the case remains open.

 

Two Benton County men were arrested in January.

 

Carl Pippin, 29, of Rogers was arrested after Long turned over to the Rogers Police Department saved online conversations she said he had with her. Prosecutors said Pippin also sent Long a photo of himself.

 

Sidney Clark, 39, of Garfield was arrested on the same day by the Benton County Sheriff's Office after allegedly having conversations with one of Long's alter egos. Clark allegedly used a Web camera to send Long sexually explicit footage of himself.

 

Long used a feature on her computer to make still photos from the electronic filming, she said.

 

Both Pippin and Clark have been charged in Benton County with violating the computer child pornography statute. Both pleaded not guilty.

 

Clark's attorney, Ed McClure of Rogers, did not want to talk about the specifics of Clark's case but said he has a problem with the Arkansas law under which Clark has been charged. The statute says it is illegal to use a computer to attempt to entice a juvenile into sex. It doesn't matter if the intended target is an adult as long as the offender believes he or she is underage.

 

"That the statute tends to make something a crime based on what the defendant believed is troubling to me," McClure said.

 

The law has only been on the books since 2001, and McClure said the constitutionality of the law hasn't been tested yet in the appeals courts.

 

Pippin's lawyer, Victoria Morris of Rogers, said in a statement released through her office, "There are always two sides to every situation and the probable cause affidavit is not evidence."

 

The latest arrest based on Long's work was that of 57-year-old Thomas Henry.

 

According to a probable cause affidavit filed by the Benton County prosecutor's office to get an arrest warrant, Henry came to Rogers from Hamilton, Ill., on March 21 to meet a girl he thought was named Cindy.

 

Long said a friend of hers scouted an address with a vacant residence on Beacon Circle and she told Henry that Cindy would meet him there.

 

Instead of Cindy, Henry was met by Rogers police detectives Kenny Fitch and Kevin Smith.

 

Henry has been charged in Benton County with sexual solicitation of a child, a Class D felony. He is scheduled to be arraigned Monday, according to deputy prosecuting attorney Clay Fowlkes.

 

His case has also been referred to the U.S. Attorney's Office, but he has not been formally charged, according to Bill Cromwell, chief deputy district attorney.

 

'Plus To Have Her'

 

To validate her online efforts, Long needs the cooperation of local law enforcement agencies, which she's gotten for the most part.

 

She's been impressed with both the Rogers Police Department and the Benton County Sheriff's Office.

 

"They get it. They really understand."

 

Fitch said he has no reservations with using Long's evidence.

 

"I think it's fine as long as she's got all her facts together," he said. "It's definitely a plus to have her."

 

She provided logs of her alleged conversations with Henry, along with photos and phone numbers.

 

Benton County Sheriff's Office investigator Chris Sparks, who worked on the investigation resulting in the arrest of Sidney Clark, agrees with Fitch's assessment.

 

Though he said at first he was skeptical of Long's story, he soon changed his mind when he saw how detailed her investigation had been.

 

"She handled herself very good with communicating with this guy," Sparks said.

 

Sparks added he would be happy to work with her again.

 

"I think she's doing a great job."

 

Dangerous Game

 

Others in law enforcement take a dim view of Long's avocation.

 

Brad Russ, director of the training and technical assistance for the federal Internet Crimes Against Children Task Force, said Long is playing a dangerous game best left to police.

 

The task force program comprises 45 regional agencies, including one in Arkansas, and is funded by the U.S. Office of Juvenile Justice and Delinquency Prevention.

 

"First of all, it's illegal to possess child porn no matter what the intent is," Russ said.

 

Russ likened Long's efforts to someone wanting to help arrest drug dealers and going out and buying drugs themselves and then telling police who sold them the drugs. Although the intention would be to help the police, it would still be illegal to buy and possess those drugs.

 

"The other concern I have, quite frankly, is for her safety," he said.

 

Any of Long's targets could get out on bail or complete their prison sentences and seek her out to exact revenge, he said.

 

Instead of departments such as Rogers and Benton County encouraging Long to continue, "I would ask those smaller departments to reach out to the task force," he said.

 

Long said there are local departments who have turned her away when she went to them with evidence, but she won't name them.

 

Compromised Tranquility

 

Long lives with her husband in a secluded neighborhood north of Eureka Springs. Steep, tree-covered ridges surround their house, where they've lived for 11 years. There are neighbors, but they are out of sight of the airy sunroom where Long works on her computer.

 

Deer are frequent visitors in the family's yard, and her dog and cat keep her company while Alan is at work. The peaceful setting is in sharp contrast to the activity on her Apple Powerbook.

 

"I didn't set out to do this -- it's not fun," she said. "You're just rolling around in the dregs of society."

 

Sometimes, it's best to detach from the conversation and the sleazy questions about breast size, favorite sex positions, amount of sexual experience and the like, she said.

 

"I will put on Kid Rock and blast it and then wait for the sound of the IM and throw in a pat answer."

 

She worries about her targets sending her child porn, which is illegal to possess by anyone.

 

"When I got the kiddie porn (from Willard), that's when I got on the phone and said 'Help, I need a policeman here,'" she said.

 

If she is sent child porn, she immediately burns a compact disc of the material, deletes it from her computer, and turns the CD over to authorities, she said.

 

Long has developed a network of online friends who do the same kind of work.

 

"We have to support each other," she said. "You can laugh and joke about it awhile ... then it all piles in on you.

 

"When I get hold of a particularly nasty one, I have to fall back for a few days."

 

Being in control of the online relationship makes it easier.

 

"I'm the hunter and not the hunted," she said. "There's some comfort in that."

 

Alan is also a source of support.

 

They first met in 1976, when she was a police officer and he was a reporter for what was then the Rogers Daily News. The paper is now The Morning News. They were married in 1981 and have three children and grandchildren.

 

Considering her police and private eye work, her latest venture didn't come as a surprise, but he was skeptical at first.

 

"I certainly didn't expect the volume of what she's been able to generate," he said.

 

Listening to her vent grows tiresome at times, he acknowledged.

 

"She gets so full of the bile and garbage and so forth."

 

But it's worth it to him because she believes her efforts are doing some good.

 

"I'm pretty proud of Zelpha. She does good."

 

More To Do

 

Long isn't worried about one of her targets coming to find her. She said she is meticulous in her record keeping and has a good idea of what she must get from her suspects to make a case. She won't go to the police unless the evidence is solid.

 

Long files the chat logs of every contact she makes, even if there was just one conversation and even if it was innocuous, because that person may reconnect, she said.

 

She generally has five to 10 possible targets working at any one time.

 

More than one person, after seeing Long become emotionally tattered, has suggested she give it up, but Long said she can't.

 

"Every time I start to back off it a little bit there's a Jessica Lunsford (who was abducted, raped and murdered in Florida earlier this year) who gets killed by a pervert.

 

"I just don't like people who prey on helpless victims."

[Like A Mofo]

Damn there are some sick people out there that is for sure...but its good to see someone luring these pedophiles in and getting them arrested, lock them up and throw away the key when arresting those losers