Cop plays teen girl in Internet seduction case

Keith Paul

Thursday, Feb. 8, 2001 | 10:46 a.m.

A 24-year-old man is in the Clark County jail this morning accused of convincing a 14-year-old Las Vegas girl over the Internet to meet in person and star in his pornographic video.

But the man's alleged plan was foiled when detectives stepped in and assumed the role of the 14-year-old girl in an online chat.

Jason Ford, 24, of Las Vegas, was booked into the jail Wednesday night on one count of attempting to use a minor in the production of pornography. The crime is a felony, said Lt. Tom Monahan of Metro Police's sexual assault unit.

The girl apparently started chatting with the man in an America Online chat room and at some point agreed to meet with him and be in a pornographic video. The girl's 16-year-old brother found out about the plan and told his parents, who then called police.

"A year ago we had no capacity to deal with something like this," Monahan said.

But in September local and federal law enforcement agencies created the Internet crimes against children task force to investigate allegations such as the one involving the 14-year-old girl.

Police assumed the girl's screen name and chatted with Ford over the Internet. A 40-something male detective pretended to be the girl, and a meeting was set up between the man and girl at the Whitney Library Wednesday, Monahan said.

"It can be difficult for a male detective to assume the role of a 14-year-old girl, but the detectives have been monitoring chat rooms and can mimic things a 14-year-old girl would say in these chat rooms," Monahan said.

Ford was greeted by police instead of the 14-year-old girl and arrested. Police obtained a search warrant for Ford's house and collected evidence including video equipment, a computer and videotapes. Police have not viewed what was recorded on the videotapes.

Ford does not have any prior convictions.

"The real hero here is the girl's 16-year-old brother," Monahan said. "He had the wherewithal to tell his parents when he found out what was going on."