Ve
rde Valley AZ (July 23, 2014) – On July 14, 2014, 62-year-old Mark Maki of Mesa, Arizona, was arrested for Aggravated Luring a Minor for Sexual Exploitation in Cottonwood. He was booked at the Camp Verde Detention Center and remains in-custody on a $35,000 bond.
A few weeks prior, Maki initiated online contact via a social networking site with a person he believed was a teenaged female minor. Maki described specific sex acts he wanted to engage in with the minor and sent online pornographic images of himself on several occasions. During early July, Maki set a date of July 14 to meet with the minor. On July 14, Maki arrived at the pre-arranged location as promised and was identified by a Yavapai County Sheriff’s Deputy based on information previously provided. Maki told deputies he was there to meet a girl he originally met online.
On July 14, 2014, 41-year-old Craig Boening of Gilbert, Arizona, was arrested for Luring a Minor for Sexual Exploitation, Child Prostitution and Sexual Conduct with a Minor in the Village of Oak Creek. He was booked at the Camp Verde Detention Center and remains in-custody on a $100,000 bond.
During prior weeks, Boening initiated and remained in contact via a social networking site with a person he believed was a teenaged female minor. He described specific sex acts and offered money in exchange for those acts.
On July 14, 2014, Boening agreed to meet the minor and arranged initial contact at a commercial parking lot in the Village of Oak Creek before heading to a motel room. Just after 10 PM, Boening arrived at the location in the car he had described and was identified by a YCSO deputy as the suspect involved in the online arrangement.
These arrests should serve as a warning to parents that monitoring your children’s online activity is very important. Chat rooms are especially concerning as they are the place where predators develop relationships and seek personal contact. For parents, please consider reviewing an internet safety presentation sponsored by the National Center for Missing and Exploited Children. A direct link to the program is provided here – http://www.netsmartz.org/Presentations/Parents.
Remember, encourage your children to immediately report any suspicious online contacts and remind them predators also use alias names and photos to give the impression they are someone else. This type of trick is used to gain trust and obtain personal information in hopes establishing a relationship beyond the online contact.
Citizens can contact the Yavapai County Sheriff’s Office with information or questions at 928-771-3260 or the YCSO website: www.ycsoaz.gov