Can cops arrest you if you reply to fake backpage ad?

[The "Bone" Ranger]

You should also consider the underage sting they had (have) going on - they wait for the "suspect" to show up in the hotel room before arresting, they don't arrest people based on them texting the cops.

They keep track of arrests in their records. Not sure if they keep track of successful convictions in courts.

 

[rhuarc29]

the text's came from his phone...... no proof he sent them phone could have been stolen or borrowed or used by someone else. unless he shows up at the incall there is a problem !!!

I wonder if that is true. So if they bust a place, be it an independent working out of a hotel room or an established agency, and they lift all phone numbers, texts, and emails from the place...can they actually pursue customers and charge them? Or do they need to bust them in the act at the incall location, in order to definitively prove it was them who communicated and followed through?

 

[The "Bone" Ranger]

Yes the texts were used after they showed up - the cops can't prove who was texting etc like someone else also said

Because less work for them to let the suspect come to them than trying to find his address and send an officer to arrest him. If you read the articles the texts exchanged before the suspect showed up are used as evidence in court because the police clearly mentioned in those texts that the suspect will be meeting someone under 18.

 

[drlove]

I wonder if that is true. So if they bust a place, be it an independent working out of a hotel room or an established agency, and they lift all phone numbers, texts, and emails from the place...can they actually pursue customers and charge them? Or do they need to bust them in the act at the incall location, in order to definitively prove it was them who communicated and followed through?

I'm wondering the same thing...

 

[Belleville69]

Stay away from BP

 

[CANTO]

I wonder if that is true. So if they bust a place, be it an independent working out of a hotel room or an established agency, and they lift all phone numbers, texts, and emails from the place...can they actually pursue customers and charge them? Or do they need to bust them in the act at the incall location, in order to definitively prove it was them who communicated and followed through?

For things like texts and e-mails they might be able to make a case depending on what was said, although it would be fairly challenging. They would have to find a way to tie the messages back to a specific person which could be hard if other people had access to the computer or the phone that was used. For voice calls it would be almost impossible because there would be no way to prove what was said during the phone call unless the agency did something dumb like record incoming phone calls.

 

[rhuarc29]

For things like texts and e-mails they might be able to make a case depending on what was said, although it would be fairly challenging. They would have to find a way to tie the messages back to a specific person which could be hard if other people had access to the computer or the phone that was used. For voice calls it would be almost impossible because there would be no way to prove what was said during the phone call unless the agency did something dumb like record incoming phone calls.

Which may be why storm77 received a warning, rather than an arrest; simply because it's too difficult to go after text messages alone. Waste of time. Or they may have been trying to get him to confess, so that they could charge him. That is, of course, if it wasn't a scam to begin with, which he doesn't think it was.