PHILADELPHIA (KYW Newsradio) — A 55-year-old Perkasie man is accused of initiating contact with a 15-year-old girl through a free online chat room, then meeting her in person at a park in New Hanover Township, where he is charged with sexually assaulting her.
Police say in May, Jonathan Faucette met the teen on Omegle. They continued to message each other through Instagram, often about sex, according to the criminal complaint. A week later, they met in a park and sat on a blanket in a wooded area, where police say Faucette assaulted the girl.
In their text conversations, the criminal complaint says Faucette told the girl he was married and he was “attracted to minors,” adding, “A lot of kids enjoy meeting up with me.”
Faucette is charged with felony statutory sexual assault, involuntary deviate sexual intercourse, corruption of minors and related charges. He is held on $500,000 cash bail with a preliminary hearing scheduled for later this month.
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Montgomery County District Attorney Kevin Steele is warning parents of the chat room, which markets itself as a way to “talk to strangers” and meet “some very cool people in the world,” he said. He noted the app has come under fire before, as it matches up strangers but doesn’t have any age verification.
Omegle started in 2009 and peaked in 2013 before fading out in popularity. But according to Google Trends, over the past year, interest in the site has more than doubled its 2013 peak. That’s generally due to TikTok users who mention the site, potentially driving a younger audience.
Brianna Ringwood, assistant chief of Montgomery County’s family protection unit, said sites like Omegle and Discord are showing up more often in criminal investigations, especially child sex abuse cases.
“They essentially give strangers an open door to your house,” she said, also noting Omegle’s lack of any age verification.
Ringwood said parents need to inform their kids to never share personal information or photos on social media — especially intimate photos.
“They should never agree to meet up with someone who they have only ever spoken with on the internet,” she added.