Police asking parents to monitor children’s online activities after Georgia deputy arrest

PLEASANT GROVE, Ala. (WBRC) - Osiel Guevara, a Rockdale County, Georgia Sheriff’s deputy, is accused of coming to Alabama to try and meet an underage girl. He was arrested on January 24.

Pleasant Grove police tell us they believe Guevara met the girl on the online gaming platform Roblox. Investigators are asking parents to keep a close eye on what their children are doing on these platforms, saying evil intent can lurk in what appears to be the most harmless of activities.

“I think the most important thing parents can do is really from an early age start talking to their kids about the dangers around strangers online,” Liz Repking with Cyber Safety Consulting said.

It’s not just a one-time conversation, says cyber safety expert Liz Repking. She says create the conversation so that kids don’t get defensive.

“You got to think about it in much the same ways that we educate our kids about how to be safe outside on the street,” Repking said. “We started at a young age. We tell them the rules and we give them lots of examples of what it looks like, what’s the scenarios, what are the tricks that a predator would use on the street.”

Repking says you may also want to consider third party parental software. The programs allow parents to track and manage what their kids are doing online.

“Flag inappropriate content, sexual words, words predators use or drug use, sex language. As soon as one of the keywords comes up it’ll send an alert to the parent that somethings going on,” Repking said.

Repking says some of these programs report to parents after the fact, but you can intercept those conversations early and stop them.

Guevara is charged with enticing a child for immoral purposes. His attorney tells us Guevara looks forward to his day in court and that he is presumed innocent and should be viewed that way until all of the evidence has been uncovered.

Pleasant Grove police tells us they are working with the FBI. Investigators say they are being very thorough because of the sensitivity of this case.

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