by Cris Italia
It's 2 a.m. on a Sunday, and a 55-year-old from Tennessee believes he has been conversing with a 13-year-old from Long Island through Instant Messaging, an America Online feature that allows you to speak electronically with anyone in the world.
The man is an administrator at a high school who coaches both a girls' and boys' basketball team. More than two hours after the conversation began, at 11:47 p.m., the administrator clearly has no reservations about talking to someone so young. He offers the girl several scenarios in which they can meet, and raises the possibility of flying her down to Tennessee.
What he doesn't know is that sitting at the other end of this conversation is Paul Hamilton, a 39-year-old investigator with the Child Abuse Unit of the Long Island Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Children. "This guy will be one of our primary targets," Hamilton says confidently.
Only half an hour into their chat, Hamilton had predicted that the man would profess his love for the fictitious 13-year-old. Sure enough, the administrator eventually types, "I think I would have a crush on you." Hamilton isn't surprised. "This is the kind of guy that comes off nice, but once he steps over that line, he will be very dangerous," he says.
Aside from his 50-plus hours a week working at the CAU offices in Oceanside, Hamilton puts in a full night's work on his computer at home on weekends. With a computer gadget called a thumb drive, he is able to save all information and transcripts. The thumb drive serves as a portable hard drive that enables investigators to work from home without compromising the evidence.
Hamilton doesn't do this for the money, but for the goal. CAU has suffered financially, operating mostly on fumes, but investigators like Hamilton believe what they are doing makes a difference. "If we can just save one child or catch one pedophile, we will be making a difference," he said, sitting in his small studio apartment in Long Beach.
With extensive experience with computers, Hamilton could be sitting pretty working just about anywhere else. Originally from Valdosta, Ga., he says he was making a decent living in Knoxville, Tenn., where he worked for an Internet content provider. His cost of living would be a lot lower anywhere else. "I'm not complaining, because I believe in this, and I believe in my chief," he said.
Chief Jeff Mackston recruited Hamilton after watching a segment on pedophiles on ABC's "20/20." Hamilton and some of his associates would disguise themselves as children on the Internet and harass pedophiles by posting their photos. Mackston called the producers of "20/20" and obtained Hamilton's phone number. At the time, in 1997, Mackston's unit had focused mostly on local pedophiles.
"The unit had worked on some Internet pedophile cases, but they flew us to New York so we could show them a presentation," Hamilton recalled. He demonstrated while undercover how a child was approached on the Internet. Through a chat room, a pedophile would contact the child first. As Hamilton showed Mackson's unit how he worked, a pedophile contacted him.
"The unit saw how well it worked and they were just jazzed about it," Hamilton said. "We started a case on that pedophile and within a week he was arrested." The suspect turned out to be a wealthy vice president of an HMO in New York City with a wife and a family. "This was a white-collar guy, and it just makes you think, With everything he has, why does he do this?" Hamilton questioned.
Mackston wanted Hamilton as part of his team. It was Hamilton who helped change the focus of the unit. Soon they were investigating a broader spectrum of cases. In an abrupt move, Hamilton packed his bags for New York, and he hasn't regretted it. "It was a big adjustment," he says looking around at his meager living conditions. "But we do damn good work. I just keep saying our time will come."
Still in heavy conversation with the school administrator in Tennessee, Hamilton has had to balance him with several other pedophiles who were hunting the same prey. His 13-year-old's disguise is a hot commodity. He makes her seem innocent enough for the pedophiles to think they can convince her to do whatever they want.
By now the administrator has offered a plane ticket to Tennessee and a stay at a hotel. "I would love to be together alone somewhere," he says. "I've always wondered about being with someone your age." In addition to his offer of gifts and fantasy, the administrator has sent a photo of himself, a portrait.
Other predators have sent more sexually explicit photos. Hamilton explains that one pedophile went as far as sending a photo of himself with a young teenage girl who is performing oral sex. "I've seen some disturbing images," Hamilton says. He describes one photo in which an older man was ejaculating on a 2-year-old toddler. And there was one pedophile who sent him a video of a young girl being raped. "I can just remember the anguish on her face -- you could tell this was done by force. Not only did this guy rape her, but he glorified it," he said.
Through another instant message, a 44-year-old from Long Island wants to know where Hamilton's 13-year-old girl hangs out. Hamilton responds with some usual locations: area malls, arcades, etc. Through all this, the conversation with the administrator continues. He admits to having crushes on some of his players. He tells Hamilton he is married, but not happily. He says that, physically, his marriage is failing. He asks if she ever wears a two-peace bathing suit at the beach, Hamilton replies yes. "Oh, wow -- what a nice image," he says.
For a suspected pedophile, the administrator has been extremely careful. He has made sure there is interest, but Hamilton does not suggest anything unless he mentions it first. "We present no entrapment," Hamilton said. "We let them suggest everything first."
Hamilton never proposes talking on the phone or setting up a meeting, nor does he talk sexually. "Once the pedophile does it, then we can re-enforce what they say," he said. "None of our cases have ever gone to court, because we're so careful. They always plead out."
While the administrator is careful with his language, others don't hold back. One man from Canada tries to lure Hamilton into cyber sex. He says, "I want to put my hand down your panties while kissing you."
"There are some pedophiles who start to pull back because they feel guilty," Hamilton said. "Others just have no moral dilemmas at all."
In a month he averages about 125 active cases. "Eventually doing this every day wears on you," the investigator said. "You lose faith in people sometimes, but we keep doing this for the good people. We'll never know the kids we save, and if I don't get to a pedophile, he'll get to someone else."
Hamilton regrettably admits that he and his colleagues in law enforcement are vastly outnumbered. There are far more pedophiles than undercover officers on the Internet. "[With] 8.5 million people in New York alone, it's safe to say there are thousands [of pedophiles] just here," he said. Hamilton alone has been involved in hundreds of investigations. "You do not know the feeling of elation we get when we bust someone," he said.
Although Hamilton can lose his focus, he has plenty of inspiration. "I had missed my niece's birthday recently and I called her and told her it was work that prevented me from calling," he said, explaining that his niece is 10. "I said I was just trying to help kids, make it a safer world for her. She said it was OK, and she knows it's 'one bad guy at a time.' That meant so much to me." Hamilton also takes part in the Big Brother program.
It's past 3 a.m., and Hamilton has begun winding down his handful of electronic conversations. At some point, pedophiles are going to question why a 13-year-old is awake at such an hour. He leaves his predators wanting more, and makes sure they will talk in the very near future.
"We made a lot of progress tonight," Hamilton said. "Opened up a couple of cases, and with the help of the Nassau County District AttorneyÕs Office and the United States Customs we are going to make some definite arrests." Internet pedophiles can be charged with a number of offenses based solely on conversations on the Internet: attempting to lure a child and transmitting or distribution of child pornography, to name just a few.
"I know me -- I try to save the world every time I do this," Hamilton said. "Parents don't think about this. Sometimes this is not on their minds. We do this so they don't have to."
