Current:Home > ScamsNew Mexico AG again accuses Meta of failing to address child exploitation as several arrested in sting operation -Achieve Wealth Network
New Mexico AG again accuses Meta of failing to address child exploitation as several arrested in sting operation
View
Date:2025-04-14 00:32:35
Police were waiting at a motel room in Gallup, New Mexico, on Tuesday when 52-year-old Fernando Clyde showed up to meet someone he was expecting to be a 12-year-old girl.
Police body camera video obtained exclusively by CBS News showed Clyde being arrested on charges that he sent unsolicited sexual messages on Facebook Messenger to who he thought was a girl, but was actually an undercover special agent for the New Mexico Justice Department.
"These are individuals who explicitly use this platform to find and target these children," New Mexico Attorney General Raúl Torrez said in a news briefing Wednesday.
The sting was part of "Operation MetaPhile," which also resulted in the arrest Tuesday of 29-year-old Marlon Kellywood at the same motel on similar charges.
The profile photo of the girl was created using artificial intelligence, officials said, and attracted potential predators.
"They initiated a sexual conversation," Torrez told CBS News. "They were sending images, graphic images, of genitalia. They were making really horrific statements about their interest in sex with these children."
Torrez was critical of how Meta — the parent company of Facebook and Instagram, and its CEO Mark Zuckerberg — have handled such security concerns.
"I think it's abundantly clear that Meta and executives like Mr. Zuckerberg don't have any intention of dedicating the kinds of resources necessary to making sure that these platforms are safe," Torrez said. "If they could make this safe on their own, they would've done it by now."
The arrests come after exclusive reporting from CBS News last December revealed New Mexico's separate civil lawsuit against Meta that alleges the company "enabled adults to find, message, and groom minors, soliciting them to sell pictures or participate in pornographic videos."
In a statement to CBS News, Meta said "child exploitation is a horrific crime and we've spent years building technology to combat it and to support law enforcement in investigating and prosecuting the criminals behind it. This is an ongoing fight, where determined criminals evolve their tactics across platforms to try and evade protections."
The company says it uses sophisticated technology and experts, and reports content to the National Center for Missing and Exploited Children.
In 2023, that organization received 36.2 million reports of suspected child sexual exploitation online.
"We could have a child in New Mexico, or anywhere in America, go online, go on one of these platforms," Torrez said. "And instead of being an undercover agent, it's actually a child who gets lured by one of these monsters."
The New Mexico Justice Department has issued a guide with tips for parents and children on how to protect themselves against such online threats.
- In:
- Technology
- New Mexico
- Meta
- Sexual Misconduct
- Crime
Journalist Jo Ling Kent joined CBS News in July 2023 as the senior business and technology correspondent for CBS News. Kent has more than 15 years of experience covering the intersection of technology and business in the U.S., as well as the emergence of China as a global economic power.
Twitter InstagramveryGood! (3688)
Related
- As Trump Enters Office, a Ripe Oil and Gas Target Appears: An Alabama National Forest
- Qatar’s offer to build 3 power plants to ease Lebanon’s electricity crisis is blocked
- A flurry of rockets will launch from Florida's Space Coast this year. How to watch Friday
- Ohio attorney general must stop blocking proposed ban on police immunity, judges say
- Juan Soto praise of Mets' future a tough sight for Yankees, but World Series goal remains
- Not-so-happy meal: As fast food prices surge, many Americans say it's become a luxury
- A Jewish veteran from London prepares to commemorate the 80th anniversary of the D-Day landings
- Pope Francis apologizes after being quoted using homophobic slur
- Warm inflation data keep S&P 500, Dow, Nasdaq under wraps before Fed meeting next week
- Top McDonald's exec says $18 Big Mac meal is exception, not the rule
Ranking
- San Francisco names street for Associated Press photographer who captured the iconic Iwo Jima photo
- US economic growth last quarter is revised down from 1.6% rate to 1.3%, but consumers kept spending
- Takeaways from The Associated Press’ reporting on seafarers who are abandoned by shipowners in ports
- Dutch police say they’re homing in on robbers responsible for multimillion-dollar jewelry heist
- Meta releases AI model to enhance Metaverse experience
- Argentina women’s soccer players understand why teammates quit amid dispute, but wish they’d stayed
- Massive 95-pound flathead catfish caught in Oklahoma
- Biden to make his first state visit to France after attending D-Day 80th commemorations next week
Recommendation
FACT FOCUS: Inspector general’s Jan. 6 report misrepresented as proof of FBI setup
6th house in 4 years collapses into Atlantic Ocean along North Carolina's Outer Banks
Palestinian prime minister visits Madrid after Spain, Norway and Ireland recognize Palestinian state
Was endless shrimp Red Lobster's downfall? If you subsidize stuff, people will take it.
The Best Stocking Stuffers Under $25
Nearly 200 shuttered 99 Cents Only stores to open as Dollar Tree locations from Texas to California
An Iceland volcano spews red streams of lava toward an evacuated town
Police say suspect, bystander hurt in grocery store shootout with officers