After tossing
her books in the lounge, she decided to grab a snack and get on-line. She
logged on under her screen name ByAngel213. She checked her Buddy List and saw
GoTo123 was on. She sent him an instant message:
ByAngel213: Hi. I'm glad you are on! I thought
someone was following me home today. It was really weird!
GoTo123: LOL You watch too much TV. Why would
someone be following you? Don't you live in a safe neighbourhood?
ByAngel213: Of course I do. LOL I guess it
was my imagination cos' I didn't see anybody when I looked out.
GoTo123: Unless you gave your name out on-line. You
haven't done that have you?
ByAngel213: Of course not I'm not stupid you know .
GoTo123: Did you have a basketball game after school
today?
ByAngel213: Yes and we won!!
GoTo123: That's great! Who did you play?
ByAngel213: We played the Hornets. LOL. Their
uniforms are so gross! they look like bees.
GoTo123: What is your team called?
ByAngel213: We are the Top Cats. We have Tiger paws
on our uniforms.They are really cool.
GoTo1 23: Did you score?
ByAngel213: No I play defence. I've got to go. My
homework has to be done before my parents get home. I don't want them mad at
me. Bye!
GoTo123: Catch you later. Bye
Meanwhile.......GoTo123 went to the
member menu and began to search for her profile. When it came up, he
highlighted it and printed it out. He took out a pen and began to write down
what he knew about Angel so far.
Her name: Shannon
Birthday: Jan. 3, 1985
Age: 13
State where she lived: New South Wales
Hobbies: Basketball, chorus, skating and
going to the shops.
Besides this information, he knew she
lived in Charlestown because she had just told him. He knew she stayed by
herself until 6:30 p.m. every afternoon until her parents came home from work.
He knew she played basketball on Thursday afternoons on the school team, and
the team was named the Top Cats. Her favourite number 7 was printed on her
jersey. He knew she was in the eighth grade at the St Marys High School . She
had told him all this in the conversations they had on- line. He had enough
information to find her now.
Shannon didn't tell her parents about
the incident on the way home from the park that day. She didn't want them to
make a scene and stop her from walking home from the ball games. Parents were
always overreacting and hers were the worst. It made her wish she was not an
only child. Maybe, if she had brothers and sisters, her parents wouldn't be so
overprotective.
By Thursday, Shannon had forgotten
about the footsteps following her.Her game was in full swing when suddenly she
felt someone staring at her. It was then that the memory came back. She glanced
up from her position to see a man watching her closely. He was leaning against
the fence behind base and he smiled when she looked at him. He didn't look
scary and she quickly dismissed the sudden fear she had felt.
After the game, he sat on a bench
while she talked to the coach. She noticed his smile once again as she walked
past him. He nodded and she smiled back. He noticed her name on the back of her
shirt. He knew he had found her.
Quietly, he walked a safe distance
behind her. It was only a few blocks to Shannon's home, and once he saw where
she lived he quickly returned to the park to get his car. Now he had to wait.
He decided to get a bite to eat until the time came to go to Shannon's house.
He drove to a fast food restaurant and sat there until time to make his move.
Shannon was in her room later that
evening when she heard voices in the living room.
'Shannon, come here,' her father
called. He sounded upset and she couldn't imagine why. She went into the room
to see the man from the park sitting on the lounge.
'Sit down,' her father began, 'this
man has just told us a most interesting story about you.'
Shannon sat back. How could he tell
her parents anything? She had never seen him before today!
'Do you know who I am, Shannon ?' the
man asked.
'No,' Shannon answered.
'I am a police officer and your online
friend, GoTo123.'
Shannon was stunned. 'That's
impossible! GoTo is a kid my age! He's 14. And he lives in Sydney !'
The man smiled. 'I know I told you all
that, but it wasn't true. You see, Shannon, there are people on-line who
pretend to be kids, I was one of them. But while others do it to injure kids
and hurt them, I belong to a group of parents who do it to protect kids from
predators. I came here to find you to teach you how dangerous it is to talk to
people on-line.
You told me enough about yourself to
make it easy for me to find you.You named the school you went to, the name of
your ball team and the position you played. The number and name on your jersey
just made finding you a breeze.'
Shannon was stunned. 'You mean you
don't live in Sydney ?'
He laughed. 'No, I live in Taree It
made you feel safe to think I was so far away, didn't it?'
She nodded.
'I had a friend whose daughter was
like you. Only she wasn't as lucky.The guy found her and murdered her while she
was home alone. Kids are taught not to tell anyone when they are alone, yet
they do it all the time on-line. The wrong people trick you into giving out
information a little here and there on-line. Before you know it, you have told
them enough for them to find you without even realising you have done it. I
hope you've learned a lesson from this and won't do it again. Tell others about
this so they will be safe too?'
EVEN
FORWARD THIS TO PEOPLE WITHOUT KIDS SO THEY CAN SEND IT TO FRIENDS THAT DO HAVE
CHILDREN OR GRANDCHILDREN