FBI agent poses as teen online in effort to nab pedophiles

BILLINGS -- Past the armed guard, up an elevator and through one of the many doors in a Billings bank building is a man who charms pedophiles.

Dan Vierthaler is a short-haired, 46-year-old father of two teenage boys, with an easygoing manner and fish swimming on the screen saver of one of his two computers. He's quick with a smile and low key, offering visitors a beverage and a glimpse into the dirty world of Internet pornography.

Vierthaler is a special agent for the FBI, part of a task force whose specialty is what's known as "traveler" or coercion cases in which an adult will try to meet up with an underage victim with the hope of having sex.

"Rather than just be reactive, I do proactive undercover work," Vierthaler said.

It's an interesting profession, probably best known by the public through the Dateline television show in which perpetrators are confronted on camera.

The unusual is part of a typical day for Vierthaler. His hours are odd, since people seeking to sexually abuse a child, or find child pornography, aren't always on a 9-to-5 schedule. Some cases take less than an hour to crack, while others have lasted a year and a half.

Five years ago, when these cases began to take off, Vierthaler said the FBI had no equipment or expertise. He and a handful of other FBI agents in the room are here to change that.

They go online, trolling though chat rooms and popular teen sites like MySpace or Facebook, talking like teenagers about boys, clothes and music.

Vierthaler laughs when asked how he assumes the persona of a 12-year-old girl. He said it's part of the training they go through, in which the agency brings in children and they talk about hobbies, interests and get tips on what they do and don't do online.

"We have to be aware of what they're wearing, who they like and don't like," Vierthaler said. "The other thing is that I have two children in that age group, so I know their slang."

He talks a fine line, needing to be available for predators but not instigating any action.

What he finds, though, shocks him as a parent.

"With the anonymity of the Internet ... people say things and do things they never would have done in a million years. Sometimes are just role playing and it becomes a fulfilling thing. Then it becomes their life and their social activity," Vierthaler said.

Assistant U.S Attorney Marcia Hurd, who prosecutes many of the cases Vierthaler and his co-workers uncover, adds that children are becoming computer savvy much earlier in life, and these children are often more vulnerable to pedophiles.

"Ten- to 15-year-old girls seem to be the most susceptible to predators, and think they're safe when they're not," Hurd said. "They'll post a photo of their house or their personal cell phone number, and these people can find you in 45 minutes or less. If you say you're Amanda and go to 'X' school, it's easy to find out who you are."

Vierthaler said it's also not just adults trying to solicit children, but that youths also are using technology in ways that are not always healthy or may even be illegal.

"Don't use your digital camera or cell phone to take pornographic pictures of yourself or your girlfriend because you might be breaking the law. Don't send that to someone on MySpace because you're breaking the law," Vierthaler said.

The FBI also does forensic work, going through computers to assess what sites a suspected criminal has been accessing and separating cases by ages and types of crimes.

All this can take its toll. Some days the work is overwhelming, and Vierthaler said they feel as though even if they had an army working on cases, pedophiles would still manage to reach children.

"It's frustrating for us because there are just not enough hours in the day to do what you want to do," Vierthaler said. "You feel good about people we catch, but can't help wonder how many you're missing."

And day after day of viewing child pornography and talking online to pedophiles can crack even the toughest agent.

Vierthaler said they undergo psychological assessments every year, and it's understood there is a certain "shelf life" for people to do this kind of work.

"There are times when we do forensic analysis on a computer and we have to sit and minutely review the pictures, movies, sometimes thousands of images. I began to notice when I did that my mood would change," Vierthaler said. "I would be angry and not know why.

"It alters your perception of the world, which is why it's important to go out with good people and adults so your cynicism doesn't go over the top. But you're a little less naïve than many people."

The job does have its benefits, though.

"My kids say, 'Don't get dad started on (the dangers of) the Internet,'" Vierthaler says with a laugh. "It comes in handy. I know what to check."

Keeping kids safe on the Internet

By EVE BYRON - IR Projects Editor - 08/13/07

Kurt Alme with the U.S. Attorney's office knows full well how prevalent child pornography can be in the Rocky Mountains.

He tells of a co-worker checking out an alleged Internet pedophile in Wyoming. Something about the man's picture struck the co-worker and he pulled out a photograph of his children, sitting on Santa's lap at a mall in Cheyenne.

Santa and the alleged offender were one and the same.

"That hit home that it's a real local problem," Alme said. "We are not trying to suggest people in those roles are there for any bad purpose, but it's not fair for people to say it doesn't happen here."

Dan Vierthaler, a special agent with the FBI who tracks down Internet child pornographers and pedophiles, said there's no "silver bullet" to keeping children safe online. Parents can install software to monitor computer use, but the best tool in the kit is to talk to children about where they're going online.

"Develop Internet rapport with your kids. Learn what they're doing and who they know," Vierthaler said. "Parents might feel stupid because their kids are more savvy with technology than the parents, but the children are naive when it comes to the Internet and its dangers. They look at it as local environment and don't see it as a World Wide Web."

A pamphlet put out by the U.S. Department of Justice offers tips for parents monitoring their child's online use.

Ways to minimize the chance of an online exploiter victimizing a child include keeping the computer in a common room rather than a child's bedroom and randomly checking e-mails or other sites a child might access.

Signs that your child may be at risk include spending large amounts of time online; phone calls -- some long-distance -- to or from people you don't know; packages from unknown persons; or a child withdrawing from the family.

If a parent suspects a problem, they should talk to the child and review what's on their computer. They also can install caller ID services, or devices that show telephone numbers dialed from your home. Parents also can monitor their child's e-mail.

If a child has been sexually solicited by someone, receives child pornography or any sexually explicit materials, the parent should keep the computer turned off to preserve any evidence and contact the local authorities.

Assistant U.S. Attorney Marcia Hurd adds that the challenges are not overwhelming for parents, but they do need to use extra effort to ensure their children aren't sucked into the burgeoning world of on- or offline child pornography.

Hurd said it's always important to teach a child not to get into a car with a stranger, but it's also important to instill a sense that they need to be cautious even of friends, their friends' family members and neighbors, as well as others in positions of authority.

"There are people you wouldn't expect who are out there and know how to get to kids," Hurd said. "You can't just focus on stranger danger; you have to focus on society in general."

Reporter Eve Byron can be reached at 447-4076 or at eve.byron@helenair.com.