Police: Undercover officers able to trap man looking for teens for sex


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SALT LAKE CITY — Undercover officers using a fake Facebook profile caught a man they say tried to meet a 15-year-old girl at a hotel for sex in Salt Lake City last Friday.

A handful of undercover officers with the Salt Lake City Police Department regularly tackle criminal activity online, said Salt Lake City Police Detective Greg Wilking. They say they got lucky when David Kent Davis, 52, sought them out on Facebook last week without realizing he was talking to police.

“(The officers) work a bunch of different angles (online), prostitution, organized crime, drug dealing ... they all kind of go hand in hand,” Wilking said.

In this case, an officer had a social media profile set up on Facebook posing as a 15-year-old girl, Wilking said. Davis fell right into their operation.

“He indicated his interest in her sexually,” Wilking said.

Davis allegedly enticed the girl to meet him and have sex at the Doubletree Suites on 110 W. 600 South last Friday afternoon. Police were watiing for him when he showed up. According to the police report, Davis admitted he came to the hotel to meet the 15-year-old girl.

Police arrested Davis and booked him on a misdemeanor charge of enticing a minor over the internet.

"If you're struggling with these issues, you should probably seek some kind of professional help," he said.

Parents should also be aware of what their children are doing online, Wilking added, always monitor who they are talking to, and tell them never to disclose personal information to a stranger online.

Families can find more resources for online protection at FBI.gov.

Contributing: Tracie Snowder

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