Category Archives: Internet Crimes

Do Recent #Pittsburgh Prostitution Busts Confuse Criminal and Victim?

Pittsburgh police reported that a woman from Toledo, Ohio, came to Pittsburgh with her family and then left them at a hotel so that she could go to work as an escort. Nine women in all were arrested for either prostitution or for offenses related to prostitution as part of a sting that was set up by Pittsburgh police. The sting was a coordinated effort between PPD detectives, the Federal Bureau of Investigations’ Human Trafficking Task Force, the Allegheny County District Attorney’s Task Force, the Allegheny County Sherriff’s Department, and federal probation officers.

The sting involved responses being sent to a number of escort services through their respective websites requesting that the women meet them at a nearby hotel. Upon arrival the women offered to perform a variety of sexual services for the undercover officers at costs ranging between $200 and $500. The women were all between the ages of 23 and 32, some of whom told police that they had no other way to earn a living.

It is interesting to see how authorities, on one hand, bill certain sex crime arrests as “freeing sex slaves from a life of servitude”, but on the other hand arrest the women – who are allegedly working in the sex field – as if they are the true criminals.

There seems to be a disconnect in our legal system. According to authorities, are sex workers victims or criminals?

Attorney Frank Walker of Frank Walker Law is a National Top 100 Criminal Defense Lawyer and Personal Injury Attorney with offices in Pittsburgh Pennsylvania and Morgantown West Virginia.

If you or someone you love are facing criminal charges or seriously injured in an accident, contact Attorney Frank Walker immediately at 412-315-744124 hours a day, 7 days a week for aggressive and experienced Criminal Defense or Representation in a Civil Case.

Commercial Pilot in Federal Custody for Sexual Assault

An Oakdale man is in federal prison as a result of an alleged visit he paid to a 15 year Ohio girl in December, which resulted in sexual activity. According to the FBI the man, who is a commercial pilot, met the girl online and traveled to West Virginia in order to have sex with her. It was not immediately clear why the girl was in West Virginia.

The accused, who is a pilot for Republic Airlines, allegedly met the 15 year old girl on a website called MeetMe.com in December. During online chatting the victim revealed to him that she was 15 years old. The two allegedly met in person and engaged in sexual activity in December, but the girl’s mother became suspicious when the girl came home early after saying she was going to stay with a friend for the night. The girl’s mother also noticed that her daughter smelled like men’s cologne. The girl’s mother then notified authorities about the situation, which led to the 28 year old pilot’s arrest.

When FBI agents raided the home of the accused on February 7, they searched his cell phone for evidence of the crime. In his cellphone the man had allegedly listed the girl as “Ohio 15,” an indication of his knowledge of her age. His text message record also allegedly indicated that he had contacted the girl for a second meeting the day before the FBI raid.

Attorney Frank Walker of Frank Walker Law is a National Top 100 Criminal Defense Lawyer and Personal Injury Attorney with offices in Pittsburgh Pennsylvania and Morgantown West Virginia.

If you or someone you love are facing criminal charges or seriously injured in an accident, contact Attorney Frank Walker immediately at 412-315-744124 hours a day, 7 days a week for aggressive and experienced Criminal Defense or Representation in a Civil Case.

Pittsburgh School Worker Charged with Seeking Sex with a Minor

A repair man for a charter school in Pittsburgh has been arrested and charged with seeking sex from a minor.

The 62 year-old accused allegedly placed at least one ad on popular classifieds website Craigslist.com, looking for someone to engage in sexual fantasies with him. The ad, which stated that age was no barrier, came to the attention of city vice officers, who began a conversation with the man while posing as a 14 year old girl. According to police, after some time chatting, the man asked for an in-person meeting.

Police say the man tried to hide his identity by using Wi-Fi connections at businesses such as McDonald’s and Wal-Mart. Police eventually lured the man to a home that he thought was the residence of the under aged girl. It was there that he was arrested.

In their investigation police will try to determine if the man has been in communication with, or has had sexual contact with any other minors. According to the police report the man has already admitted to authorities that he possesses pornographic images of children on his computer.

Attorney Frank Walker of Frank Walker Law is a National Top 100 Criminal Defense Lawyer and Personal Injury Attorney with offices in Pittsburgh Pennsylvania and Morgantown West Virginia.

If you or someone you love are facing criminal charges or seriously injured in an accident, contact Attorney Frank Walker immediately at 412-315-744124 hours a day, 7 days a week for aggressive and experienced Criminal Defense or Representation in a Civil Case.

Pittsburgh’s Child Predator Unit Makes Two Arrests For Child Porn In One Week

Two Pittsburgh area men were arrested last week on charges relating to the possession of child pornography. The cases, however, are unrelated to one another except that the came as a result of the same investigation. The men allegedly are not acquainted. The attorney general’s office reported that one of the suspects, a 36 year old man from New Kensington, admitted that he was recording a teenage girl in her bedroom by using a webcam device. The other suspect is a 41-year-old from man South Park. Both of them are being held until their respective preliminary hearings, which will both take place next week.

The Child Predator Unit of the attorney general’s office began investigating the 36-year-old man last month when a larger investigation of consumers of child porn was already underway. Agents were investigating users who were accessing a specific internet file-sharing network exclusively for such material. The agents traced his IP address to a home on North Bluff Drive where the man lives with his wife and a 17-year-old female.  There they found over 100 child porn videos that had been downloaded to his hard drive, some of which featuring children as young as 2.

The 41-year-old was arrested as part of the same larger investigation but the specific nature and quantity of the content found on his computer was not revealed.

Attorney Frank Walker of Frank Walker Law is a National Top 100 Criminal Defense Lawyer and Personal Injury Attorney with offices in Pittsburgh Pennsylvania and Morgantown West Virginia.

If you or someone you love are facing criminal charges or seriously injured in an accident, contact Attorney Frank Walker immediately at 412-315-744124 hours a day, 7 days a week for aggressive and experienced Criminal Defense or Representation in a Civil Case.

More Child Porn Charges for Westmoreland Man

A Westmoreland County man, who was already facing child pornography charges, is now facing additional charges as police continue to investigate the case.

The 36 year old suspect was originally caught in a sting by the state’s Child Predator Unit as it investigated an online network which facilitated the exchange of child pornography. After being identified and located in connection with the investigation, the suspect was allegedly found to have a remote control system in his house, which he used to activate a webcam in the room of a 15 year old girl who lived with him.  Police say that he used the webcam to record the girl undressing.

After searching the man’s computer, police allegedly found about 100 child porn videos, which resulted in additional charges. They also found evidence that the man was secretly recording the girl who lived with him. His relationship to her has not been revealed.

The man is being held on $150,000 bond.

Attorney Frank Walker of Frank Walker Law is a National Top 100 Criminal Defense Lawyer and Personal Injury Attorney with offices in Pittsburgh Pennsylvania and Morgantown West Virginia.

If you or someone you love are facing criminal charges or seriously injured in an accident, contact Attorney Frank Walker immediately at 412-315-744124 hours a day, 7 days a week for aggressive and experienced Criminal Defense or Representation in a Civil Case.