Teens Set Up Own Internet Sting, Catch Male Teacher Hitting on Underage Girls - Scott Dietlin
And he would have gotten away with it, if it wasn't for those stupid, meddling kids!
Scott Dietlin, a teacher at Casa Grande High School in California, thought he was exchanging messages with an underage girl online, when in fact it was two teen aged boys who had created the fake MySpace page. When Dietlin's messages allegedly appeared inappropriate, the young Hardy Boys turned their evidence over to Burlingame police, who then also posed as a teenage girl (must be pretty easy, everyone seems to be doing it) and began communicating with Dietlin, who then arranged for the "girl" to meet him to have a possible sexual encounter. Instead--you guessed it!--the 34-year-old history and economics teacher was arrested on several felony charges for allegedly making arrangements to have sex with a minor.
For their efforts, the boys were given a hardy pat on the back and a date with Nancy Drew (the hot TV one, not Julia Roberts niece). Here's more on the story from the Press Democrat:
Scott Dietlin was arrested by Burlingame detectives at 9:45 a.m. after a week-long investigation stemming from a correspondence he had with two Burlingame teenagers on myspace.com. The teens posted a photograph and profile of another young woman on myspace.com as if they actually were being posted by her, and Dietlin then started engaging in e-mails with them.Read more...
The teens, feeling that Dietlin’s e-mails were inappropriate, contacted Burlingame police, who began investigating the situation. A Burlingame detective, posing as a teenage girl, then began communicating with Dietlin, and arranged a time and place in San Mateo to meet him to have a possible sexual encounter.
When he arrived at the location, they arrested Dietlin on charges of sending harmful matter with the intent to seduce a minor, attempting to contact a minor with the intent to commit a sexual offense and arranging to meet with a minor with intent to commit a sexual offense. He was booked into Sonoma County Jail, where he remained in custody on $550,00 bail.
After his arrest, Burlingame police obtained a warrant to search his vehicle and home in Petaluma. They reportedly found condoms, as well as a computer and cell phone police believe he used during the communications.
