This following story was forwarded to me by e-mail and I
felt it needed to be posted on the Internet. I do not know the authour and if it is
copyrighted and the owner wishes me to remove it, please send an e-mail to me and I will oblige.
IF YOU HAVE (or know of) KIDS ON LINE, THIS IS
BONE CHILLING BUT TRUE |
Shannon could hear the footsteps behind her as she walked toward home. The thought
of being followed made her heart beat faster.
"You're being silly," she told herself, "no one is following you."
To be safe, she began to walk faster, but the footsteps kept up with her pace. She
was afraid to look back and she was glad she was almost home. Shannon said a quick
prayer, "God please get me home safe." She saw the porch light burning and
ran the rest of the way to her house.
Once inside, she leaned against the door for a moment, relieved to be in the safety of her
home. She glanced out the window to see if anyone was there. The sidewalk was empty.
After tossing her books on the sofa, she decided to grab a snack and get on-line. She
logged on under her screen name ByAngel213. She checked her Buddy List and saw
GoTo123 was on. She sent him an instant message:
ByAngel213: Hi I'm glad you are on! I thought someone was following me home today. It was
really weird!
GoTo123: LOL You watch too much TV. Why would someone be following you? Don't you
live in a safe neighborhood?
ByAngel213: Of course I do. LOL I guess it was my imagination cuz' I didn't see anybody
when I looked out.
GoTo123: Unless you gave your name out on-line. You haven't done that have you?
ByAngel213: Of course not. I'm not stupid you know.
GoTo123: Did you have a softball game after school today?
ByAngel213: Yes and we won!!
GoTo123: That's great! Who did you play?
ByAngel213: We played the Hornets. LOL. Their uniforms are so gross! They look like bees.
LOL
GoTo123: : What is your team called?
ByAngel213: We are the Canton Cats. We have tiger paws on our uniforms. They are
really kewl.
GoTo123: Did you pitch?
ByAngel213:: No I play second base. I got to go. My homework has to be done before my
parents get home. I don't want them mad at me. Bye
GoTo123: Catch you later.. Bye
Meanwhile......
GoTo123 went to the member menu and began to search for her profile. When it came up, he
highlighted it and printed it out. He took out a pen and began to write down what he knew
about Angel so far.
Her name: Shannon
Birthday: Jan. 3, 1985
Age:13
State where she lived: North Carolina
Hobbies: softball, chorus, skating and going to the mall.
Besides this information, he knew she lived in Canton because she had just told him. He
knew she stayed by herself until 6:30 p.m. every afternoon until her parents came
home from work. He knew she played softball on Thursday afternoons on the school
team, and the team was named the Canton Cats. Her favorite number 7 was printed on her
jersey.
He knew she was in the seventh grade at the Canton Junior High School. She had told
him all this in the conversations they had on-line. He had enough information to
find her now.
Shannon didn't tell her parents about the incident on the way home from the ball park that
day. She didn't want them to make a scene and stop her from walking home from the softball
games. Parents were always overreacting and hers were the worst. It made her wish
she was not an only child. Maybe if she had brothers and sisters, her parents wouldn't be
so overprotective.
By Thursday, Shannon had forgotten about the footsteps following her. Her game was in full
swing when suddenly she felt someone staring at her. It was then that the memory came
back. She glanced up from her second base position to see a man watching her
closely. He was leaning against the fence behind first base and he smiled when she
looked at him. He didn't look scary and she quickly dismissed the fear she had felt. After
the game, he sat on a bleacher while she talked to the coach. She noticed his smile once
again as she walked past him. He nodded and she smiled back. He noticed her name on the
back of her shirt. He knew he had found her. Quietly, he walked a safe distance behind
her. It was only a few blocks to Shannon's home, and once he saw where she lived he
quickly returned to the park to get his car.
Now he had to wait. He decided to get a bite to eat until the time came to go to Shannon's
house. He drove to a fast food restaurant and sat there until time to make his move.
Shannon was in her room later that evening when she heard voices in the living room.
"Shannon, come here," her father called.
He sounded upset and she couldn't imagine why. She went into the room to see the man from
the ballpark sitting on the sofa.
"Sit down," her father began, "this man has just told us a most interesting
story about you."
Shannon moved cautiously to a chair across from the man. How could he tell her parents
anything? She had never seen him before today!
"Do you know who I am Shannon?" The man asked.
"No", Shannon answered.
"I am a police officer and your online friend, GoTo123."
Shannon was stunned. "That's impossible! GoTo is a kid my age! He's 14 and
he lives in Michigan!"
The man smiled. "I know I told you all that, but it wasn't true. You see Shannon
there are people on-line who pretend to be kids; I was one of them. But while others
do it to find kids and hurt them, I belong to a group of parents who do it to protect kids
from predators. I came here to find you to teach you how dangerous it is to give out too
much information to people on-line. You told me enough about yourself to make it easy for
me to find you: Your name, the school you went to, the name of your ball team and the
position you played. The number and name on your jersey just made finding you a
breeze."
Shannon was stunned. "You mean you don't live in Michigan?"
He laughed. "No, I live in Raleigh. It made you feel safe to think I was so far away,
didn't it?" She nodded.
"I had a friend whose daughter was like you. Only she wasn't as lucky. The guy found
her and murdered her while she was home alone. Kids are taught not to tell anyone when
they are alone, yet they do it all the time on-line.The wrong people trick you into giving
out information a little here and there on-line. Before you know it, you have told them
enough for them to find you without even realizing you have done it. I hope you've learned
a lesson from this and won't do it again."
"I won't," Shannon promised solemnly.
"Will you tell others about this so they will be safe too?"
"It's a promise!"
That night Shannon and her dad and Mom all knelt down together and prayed. They
thanked God for protecting Shannon from what could have been a tragic situation.
|
