The Oconto Falls Police Department, armed with specialized training and donated equipment, has launched a crusade to prevent technology-facilitated crimes against children.
Officer Jamie Kuhn completed a weeklong training session earlier this year to learn about cyber crime. She put her knowledge to use by participating in the latest Internet sex sting operation run by Brown County that netted 24 arrests.
Each week she will devote some of her patrol time to investigating cases of child exploitation.
“It’s disturbing, but it’s important,” Kuhn said of her work.
Oconto Falls is now an affiliate of the Internet Crimes Against Children Task Force.
Technology has opened new avenues for people to interact, sometimes in a way that victimizes others.
“The days of looking for the creepy guy in the van by the park are gone,” Police Chief Brad Olsen said.
Individuals preying on children “can become whatever they want, to be appealing to that age of victim they’re looking for,” he said. “The Internet essentially has no borders. … Anyone can essentially enter your home and assault your child.”
Equipping the Police Department with the technology to run an elaborate program was too costly, so the department approached a local business for the basic tools to get investigations rolling.
Radio Shack donated an iPhone and MiFi, a mobile Wi-Fi hotspot, which provides Kuhn with the technology and anonymity needed for her investigations.
“I think it’s a wonderful thing to be a part of, and I’m glad we can help out,” said Robin Banaszynski, store manager.
The Police Department also is asking the community for donations of working laptops or monetary donations to cover the expenses of training and updating technology.
“Everything is so dynamic in the world of computers, and the training can sometimes be costly,” Kuhn said.
Kuhn said her investigations can be complex and time consuming, so it’s nice to have affiliated agencies, such as the sheriff’s departments of Oconto, Brown and Shawano counties, with which to share resources.
Kuhn will act on tips provided by the National Center for Missing and Exploited Children, which receives notifications from Internet service providers regarding the sharing of child pornography.
Although the investigations might not lead to Oconto Falls residents, they can stop perpetrators from preying on local youths, Kuhn said.
“We are worried about keeping all the kids in this community safe,” she said.
Children or teens might chat online with someone believed to be their age, when instead it could be someone intending to victimize them.
“There’s continually evolving apps and Web-based programs that are coming out for ways to communicate via the Internet, and it’s really easy to manipulate those things,” Kuhn said.
She recommends parents and youth visit www.netsmartz.org to view information about the dangers of the Internet.
“I don’t think there’s any more important task we have than to protect the children of the community and any children who come into our community,” Kuhn said. “There’s just so many more dangers that our kids are facing nowadays.”
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