ICE Expands Child Predator Locator App
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BOSTON (AP) — An iPhone app designed to help catch fugitive and suspected child predators led law enforcement officials to a suspect less than 36 hours after it became available, according to federal law enforcement officials.
A year later, they are hoping to greatly expand their reach by making the app available in Android and Spanish versions.
U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement's Homeland Security Investigations, which introduced the "Operation Predator" app for Apple products in Sept. 2013, announced the expansion Tuesday.
"This app is one piece of our commitment to ensuring child predators have absolutely nowhere to hide," Acting ICE Director Thomas Winkowski said in a news release.
ICE spokesman Daniel Modricker said investigators at a tip line center in Williston, Vermont, filter tips from around the country, weed out bogus reports and send legitimate ones to agents working in the field.
He said investigators are hoping to reach many more people by making the Android and Spanish language versions available to the entire smartphone market.
The app allows users to receive alerts about wanted predators, to share the information through email and social media, and to pass along tips by filling out an online form or calling a tip line. It also allows users to see news about arrests and prosecutions of child predators.
The Spanish language versions of the app are built into the iOS and Android applications and don't require additional downloads.
(©2014 CBS Local Media, a division of CBS Radio Inc. All Rights Reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed. The Associated Press contributed to this report.)
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