Snapchat’s latest feature, a filter that allows people to swap genders for a quick photo or video, has proven to be more than just a means of entertaining users after one college student used the filter to disguise himself as an underage girl and catch a predatory cop, Huffington Post reported.
First, the filter seemed like nothing more than an easy way to prank someone.
For instance, a man named Ryan Hill used the gender-swapping technology to make his girlfriend think he was cheating on her, which wasn’t exactly the best idea and unsurprisingly backfired on him when his girlfriend got upset.
I’m not sure how he didn’t see that one coming, but I digress.
Since its initial release, other stories involving the filter have been pretty tame.
Another man used it to trick guys on Tinder into swiping right on him and ended up with way more matches than he was ever expecting to get. In fact, he stole about 1,600 guys’ hearts on the app who fell for Jake…I mean, Jess .
Now the filter is making headlines again, this time for its assistance in catching an alleged pedophile.
A 20-year-old San Francisco Bay Area college student, who’s only been identified as Ethan, decided to go under cover on Tinder posing as a 16-year-old girl, an identity he achieved by using the gender-swapping filter.
He used the filtered photo of himself with longer hair and feminne features to become Esther, whose Tinder profile said she was 19.
It was through this profile that Ethan (as “Esther”), first came into contact with 40-year-old San Mateo Police Office Robert Davies who reached out to the teen on the app to initiate a series of messages beginning on May 11, investigators said .
After connecting on Tinder, Ethan and Officer Davies moved their conversation to another messaging app called Kik.
There, “Esther” admitted that she’s actually only 16 and asked Davies it that bothered. Screenshots of the chat obtained by investigators reveals that Davies acknowledged that Esther was underage and asked her to add him on Snapchat, at which point they discussed her being a minor and about engaging in sexual activity.
Ethan spent more than 12 hours interacting with Officer Davies online before handing over screenshots of their conversations to Crime Stoppers.
Davies was subsequently arrested and now faces a charge of contacting a minor to commit felony. He has since been placed on paid paid administrative leave.
Ethan said he didn’t create the Tinder account specifically to target Officer Davies.
In an interview with NBC Bay Area , he admitted, “I was just looking to get someone…He just happened to be a cop.”
San Mateo Police Chief Susan Manheimer has released a statement following Davies’ arrest.
“As San Mateo police officers, we have sworn an oath to serve and protect our communities,” she said. “I can assure you that we remain steadfast to this commitment to serving our community with ‘Professionalism, Integrity, and Excellence.'”
Prior to the incident, Davies had been recognized for his police leadership by the department.
h/t: Huffington Post
