Six Massachusetts college students are accused of luring an active-duty military member to campus under false pretenses of being sexual predators, where they were chased and assaulted by a group of more than 20 people, authorities said.
One of the accused students told police that the plot was modeled after the NBC canceled show “To Catch a Predator,” which featured adults trying to prey on minors over the course of three seasons. He reportedly told police that his intention was to catch him using disguised decoys and undercover cameras. A statement of the facts in the case.
“Catching predators is a big thing on TikTok right now,” the fact sheet quotes student Easton Randall, 19, as saying.
Last month, 11 Illinois teens were charged in a similar incident, which authorities in Mount Prospect, northwest of Chicago, blamed on a “viral social media trend.”
In a statement at the time, the city’s police department did not provide further details about the trend, but Police Chief Michael Eterno warned parents that they should “resolve these incidents to be an active participant with their teens.” “Please take this as an opportunity to discuss the seriousness of this matter.” These are the types of trends seen on social media. ”
Assumption College, a private Catholic college in Worcester where the six people accused in the plot are students, said there was “no evidence at all” that the man accused by students of being a predator was soliciting sex with minors. ”, the statement said.
Still, he was chased by what the statement described as a “mob” of 25 to 30 people, some of whom were recording the chase, and “systematic abuse, false allegations.” He was caught up in a conspiracy carried out by a group of six people. Imprisonment, physical assault, assault, and even character assassination are possible,” said University Police Sgt.
Charged with kidnapping and conspiracy
One of the students was identified as a juvenile in the statement, but their charges are not included in the criminal complaint filed last month. Randall and five other students were charged with kidnapping and conspiracy, according to the complaint.
Two other students were also charged with additional crimes. Kelsey Brainard, 18, was charged with menacing. Kevin Carroll, 18, was charged with assault and battery with a dangerous weapon.
Messages left with attorneys for Carroll and the other defendant were not returned. Randall’s relatives declined to comment. A message left for another defendant at a phone number listed as a relative was not returned, nor was a message sent via Facebook to a profile that included Brainard’s name.
Assumption University President Greg Weiner said in a statement that the conduct described in the court complaint is “abhorrent and contrary to Assumption University’s mission and values.” Under all circumstances, we expect our students to use sound judgment and uphold the principles of respect, responsibility, and character that define our community. ”
Weiner said once the incident was reported, the school’s public safety department investigated the allegations and filed criminal charges.
“This situation is particularly disturbing because the victim is an active military member,” he said. “His service reminds us of the sacrifices made by those who protect our freedoms, including the opportunity to receive a college education.”
The victim’s father told NBC News over the phone that his son was 22 years old. Officials did not say which military service his son was in, but said he appeared to be carrying out his mission.
“They’re doing their due diligence, but these kids seem to have hanged themselves on their own terms,” he said.
To attend a funeral at home
According to the statement of facts, the Oct. 1, 2024 incident was first reported to the university a day after Brainard said a “creepy” Tinder app contact came to campus to meet with a 17-year-old girl. It has been reported to the relevant parties. She texted her friend Randall, and Randall chased the person away, according to the statement.
In a subsequent interview with campus police, Brainard repeated this claim and said he had been the victim of an unsolicited contact, according to the statement.
Campus authorities were later connected to the member by the Worcester Police Department, but police provided a very different explanation.
He told campus police he had returned home to attend his grandmother’s funeral and started texting someone on Tinder because he “just wanted to be around happy people,” according to the statement.
He told police that he and Brainard had been planning a relationship and that Brainard had invited them to meet at the university’s alumni hall, according to the statement.
attacked by a mob
He was in the building for several minutes, according to the statement, when “a group of people came out of nowhere and started calling him a pedophile and accusing him of liking 17-year-old girls.”
“He was unable to leave as he was grabbed and stopped from leaving,” the statement said. “Subject reported that he was able to escape and ran up a flight of stairs while being chased by a group of over 25 people.”
The man told police he was chased to his car, punched in the head and had the car door slammed against him, the statement said. He called police after he was able to flee campus, the statement said.
A review of the campus security video detailed in the statement confirmed the victim’s account. The newspaper said the video showed one of the alleged assailants banging his head on a man’s car door and being arrested, then minutes later students accusing the victim of being a sexual predator. The two chased each other on video and were caught giving high fives to each other. statement.
A review of the Tinder messages revealed that the trooper believed he was meeting an 18-year-old boy, the statement said. The woman’s profile indicated she was 18 years old. When officers asked Brainard where the information about the underage girl came from, “she was unable to answer,” the statement added.
“Call the police or kick the police.”
Randall told authorities that six students, who learned that Brainard had been texting with the victim, came up with the idea to lure him to campus.
“He reported that it was like the Chris Hansen video that says, ‘If you catch a predator, call the police or kick their butt,'” the host of “To Catch a Predator.” Referring to the statement, the statement said:
The show, which aired from 2004 to 2007, used hidden cameras and people posing as minors in online chat rooms to lure alleged looters to the homes Hansen confronted. . This program did not condone or contain violence.
After a Texas prosecutor who was one of the show’s targets died by suicide, his family sued the agency for $105 million in 2007. NBC settled the following year for an undisclosed amount, saying the matter was “amicably resolved.”
In an interview with campus police, Randall said he and several others had made suggestions about what Brainard should say in his message to service members, according to the statement. After luring him to campus, the group used an alumni group chat to “rally” others at the university, according to the statement. The move prompted an “enthusiastic reaction” from dozens of people attending the event.
Randall then admitted to authorities that “things got out of hand and things got worse,” the statement said.
