Two Ohio cops are under investigation after a viral video posted by dad shows one of them saying his 11-year-old daughter could face “child porn” charges after the father tells them she was being victimized by an online predator. Here are the shocking details of the incident.
Dad Wanting to Protect 11-Year-Old Daughter
Ohio police say two officers are under investigation after a father posted a video of cops responding to his call that an online sexual predator was grooming his 11-year-old daughter, and she had sent photos to the individual.
He was told the girl could face “child porn” charges, the video shows. The unidentified dad posted a home surveillance clip of the encounter to TikTok, where it went viral and unleashed a backlash against Columbus police.
Police Took 6 Hours to Respond
The father said he called police at about 6 p.m. last Friday to report his child had been coerced into sending photographs to a man online, but officers didn’t arrive until midnight.
The man is heard telling the officers he wanted them to speak with his daughter so she would “realize what this was.”
“She’s Still Making Porn”
The dad then said, “I mean, [the] reality is, there’s not much I probably can do about it, is there?”
A female officer replied, “I mean, she can probably get charged with child porn.”
“Who, she can?” the father said. “She’s 11 years old.”
“She’s creating it, right?” the woman officer said.
“She’s 11 years old,” the dad repeated.
“Doesn’t matter,” the cop said. “She’s still making porn.”
The father continued and said, “That is not the case. My daughter is being manipulated by an adult on the internet.”
The father then ended the conversation. “You guys have a nice evening,” he said. “Thank you for coming.”
As he closed the door, he concluded the interaction with a sarcastic comment “Are you serious?”
Viral Video Viewed Over 700,000 Times
After the video was reposted again and again on TikTok, Facebook, and X and was viewed over 700,000 times, Columbus police announced Monday that the city’s Department of the Inspector General, “which investigates complaints of misconduct and/or excessive use of force by sworn personnel, has opened an inquiry into this incident.”
“Lack of Compassion Decency and Dignity”
A further response came from Columbus Police Chief Elaine Bryant, who issued a statement on X (formerly Twitter). She said she had apologized to the father and the video showed a lack “of compassion, decency, and dignity.”
“My expectation is that our officers treat every victim of crime with compassion, decency, and dignity. What I saw in that video did not reflect that — which is why we referred this case to the inspector general,” Bryant said.
“I want to make it clear — this incident does not reflect the division as a whole. Our officers do outstanding work to bring comfort and justice to victims every day,” the chief said.
Investigation of the Crime
Bryant continued “As soon as we learned of this incident, we immediately reached out to the father to apologize, and to assure him that this matter was being fully investigated — both the actions of this officer, and more importantly, any crime committed against his child.”
Columbus police later said its sexual assault unit has since launched an investigation.
Social Media Backlash
There were over 1400 responses to the Police Chief’s statement on X. Here are a few examples of how the public felt.
“Your officers threatened to arrest an 11-year-old girl who had been groomed by an online predator. Delete your division.” was a passionate response from one reader.
Further outrage was expressed by a second user “Fire her, she has no place in law enforcement.”
“Lesson: Don’t call the police. They won’t help you. They’ll only make things worse. They are literally the enemy.” was an unfortunate opinion of another reader.
Another demanded “This disgusting officer blames a child!! Who is she? We want names now !!!”
The post An 11-Year-Old Grooming Victim Told She “Could Get Charged With Child Porn” – Officer Is Investigated first appeared on The Net Worth Of.
Featured Image Credit: Shutterstock / Svitlana Hulko