The Marion County Sheriff’s Office in Ocala, Florida, said a missing Ohio teenager was found in Florida after detectives tracked her down through an online video game account logged into the home of a 31-year-old man.
Thomas Ebersol, 31, was arrested Wednesday after detectives found the 16-year-old girl at his home after tracking her location after she logged into World of Warcraft, according to an arrest affidavit obtained by The Associated Press.
According to the affidavit, Ebersol initially told officers he did not know the 16-year-old but then brought him to the door. Representatives described him as “disappointed but cooperative.”
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During his interview, Ebersole allegedly admitted to having a “romantic relationship” with a 16-year-old girl and driving thousands of miles to Ohio to pick her up, deputies said.
According to the affidavit, detectives say he told them he knew the girl’s age and that he planned to hide the teen in his home and “make her his wife.”
Ebersole told investigators that he initially contacted the girl through Discord, an instant-messaging app popular among gamers.
Discord messages cited in the court document revealed that Ebersole and the 16-year-old referred to each other by pet names, including “little wolf” and “my hot tear DH tank.” According to the document, both of them also made several romantic statements.
According to messages from the app cited in the document, Ebersol left his home in Florida on Dec. 27 to pick up the teenage girl.
Deputies said they observed three bruises on Ebersole’s neck, which they said were “hickeys” given to him by a 16-year-old girl, which he confirmed. Deputies said they determined that the “overtly sexual” act was not “normal behavior” between a child and an adult.
Ebersole was taken into custody on charges of traveling to meet a minor to engage in sexual activity, interference with child custody, and harboring an unaccompanied minor.
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A report by NBC News highlighted child safety issues surrounding Discord, citing 31 cases since the app’s creation in which adults were prosecuted on charges of “kidnapping, grooming or sexual assault”. Was, which allegedly included communicating on the platform.
According to its guidelines, Discord warns users under 18 not to engage in sexual conduct that puts them at risk, and it prohibits adults from soliciting or engaging in sexual content from users under 18. Prevents from engaging in sexual conduct.
According to the third quarter transparency report, Discord disabled 128,153 accounts and removed 7,736 servers from July to September 2023 over child safety issues that involved grooming or increased threats.
