(KGTV) – A photographer and a social media post was among the thousands arrested last week after being busted by a vigilante group called the CC Unit. “CC” stands for “crawling catch”.
“What we do is to catch online sellers who prey on children,” said the group’s founder, who goes by the name “Ghost”.
According to Ghost, a social media story run by the group contacted by Ronald Stephens, a photographer from San Marcos known throughout San Diego County for his work photographing cars low.
Ghost said there was a series of sexually explicit texts between Stephens and the alleged victim over the course of several days before they planned to meet at a store in San Clemente. Once there, Ghost, who is filming with two other people with cameras, greets Stephens.
“He calls me scam and I take out my phone and I pick up the phone. And then he knew right away that the person he met was us,” Ghost told ABC 10News.
“It’s quite scary. He’s like, ‘I don’t want to get in trouble. I don’t want to get into trouble. I’m afraid of that. I’m afraid he’ll go to jail.’ I said ‘Honestly, what are you here for?’ And he admitted that he was here for sexual purposes with a 14, he thought it was a 14-year-old.
Vigilante groups are controversial, and many law enforcement agencies discourage people from participating in the kinds of activities that the CC Group does.
Ghost said that although they don’t work with law enforcement, they always give a tip to the authorities where the sting will happen. In the case of Stephens’ altercation, Orange County Sheriff’s deputies arrived about ten minutes after Ghost approached Stephens.
A spokesperson for the department confirmed to ABC 10News that Stephens was arrested based on evidence provided by the CC Unit, as well as Stephens’ allegations.
Aside from the potential danger, experts say cases that rely on vigilance can be difficult to prosecute. But Ghost, who has been posting videos of his injections online, says he believes his tactics are legitimate. “These men confess on camera. We don’t need a trial for them to be convicted. If they confess on camera and we show all the evidence, I don’t need it. then they go to court and say ‘Hey, I’m guilty.’
Copyright 2023 Scripps Media, Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, published, reproduced, or redistributed.