BENSALEM, Pa. (KYW Newsradio) — The Bucks County District Attorney’s Office and Bensalem police say they’ve caught and convicted more than a dozen men for crimes against children this year through their participation in the Internet Crimes Against Children (ICAC) Task Force.
Forty-nine men in three years have been arrested in Bucks County as county and Bensalem Township detectives have attempted to prevent child abuse before it happens through the ICAC.
Officials revealed that number on Tuesday as they celebrated the 17 arrests made this year. “We know, sadly, the predators are walking among us, and it takes efforts like this, this. Look at these resources, and this is just a fraction of the people doing the work, and this is what we produce,” said Bucks County District Attorney Jennifer Schorn.
The recidivism rate is through the roof, so we have to have proactive measures taken every day to combat it.”
The 17 men arrested this year have all been convicted, according to William McVey, Bensalem’s public safety director. He said tips from the National Center for Missing and Exploited Children led to the arrests of six men for possession of or dissemination of child sexual abuse material.
“The other 11 that we have here were all the result of Detective Ryan Kolb and our Detective Division proactively engaging with these individuals online and seeing where it leads,” said McVey, who added that six traveled to Bensalem hoping to meet a child and instead were arrested.
“The fact that they were met by law enforcement is what we want, right? No child was ever in danger because of these efforts, and hopefully they won't be in danger for years because they'll be behind bars.”
McVey also urged parents to stay vigilant, while Bensalem police suggested parents track their children’s use of dating and chat apps.
“We implore parents to monitor their child's online activity,” said McVey. “Speak to them about these hidden dangers.”