‘To Catch a Predator’ scheme allegedly ended in Alberta child abduction: RCMP

Police say an alarming social media trend turned dangerous after a 12-year-old boy was allegedly abducted.

A Calgary man has been arrested and charged in connection with an alleged child abduction in Airdrie earlier this week.

Airdrie RCMP responded to reports of an abduction just before 8 p.m. on Monday.

Investigators say the victim, a 12-year-old boy, escaped from a vehicle after it stopped at a red light. He then called 911.

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Officers located the vehicle believed to be involved shortly after, and though they attempted to stop it, RCMP say the driver continued heading south on Highway 2.

RCMP, with help from Calgary police and the HAWCS helicopter, were able to locate the vehicle in northeast Calgary, taking a suspect into custody.

In a Wednesday news release, RCMP said the investigation revealed at least seven youth had attempted a To Catch a Predator-style scheme where they allegedly arranged a meeting with the suspect through Snapchat.

“One 12-year-old male got into the suspect’s vehicle voluntarily so that the other youth could record the interaction,” RCMP said. “This is when the suspect drove away.”

S/Sgt. Mark Auger with Alberta Law Enforcement Response Teams (ALERT) says the incident was “amazingly dangerous.”

It’s a sentiment that Airdrie RCMP Cpl. Christopher Hrynyk echoed.

“It’s such a dangerous situation to put themselves in. We don’t encourage anybody to take these vigilante steps,” he said.

Zain Merchant, a 37-year-old from Calgary, faces charges of abduction, sexual interference, invitation to sexual touching and flight from a police officer, among others.

Auger said Merchant is known to the Internet Child Exploitation unit (ICE).

“We’ve had more than one investigation on file with this offender, which again speaks to the dangerous and high-risk nature of meeting strangers, conversing with strangers. … We do not encourage any of this behaviour.”

Auger said there’s a “growing trend” of youth engaging in similar schemes online.

“A lot of these setups and these stings will end in violence, in suicide, in sexual assault. It’s not worth the risk.”

Merchant has been remanded into custody and will appear in court on Thursday.