A Vancouver man accused of attempting to facilitate a sexual relationship between a man and a 12-year-old girl made a first court appearance Monday.
William Arnol Young, 38, appeared in Clark County Superior Court on suspicion of second-degree attempted rape of a child, communication with a minor for immoral purposes and four counts of first-degree possession of depictions of a minor engaged in sexually explicit conduct. Judge Bernard Veljacic set bail at $35,000, and arraignment was scheduled for July 19, according to court records.
Officers with the Vancouver Police Department Digital Evidence Cybercrime Unit arrested Michael G. Carruth, 56, of Mount Vernon, on May 5 as he stood outside the Motel 6 on Northeast Chkalov Drive, according to a probable cause affidavit. Carruth was waiting outside to meet with someone he believed was a girl whom he had been text messaging for more than a month, according to the affidavit.
A girl received a text from Carruth in March, according to the affidavit. A man calling himself Mike said he was 48 and sent the girl a photo of a white man with gray hair, the affidavit said. The girl told her parents about the texts, and they promptly called police.
A police sergeant with the cybercrimes unit then texted Carruth, posing as the girl, and the conversation quickly turned sexual, according to the affidavit. Over the course of several weeks, Carruth “sent numerous texts with sexually explicit communication to me, as well as over 20 (nude and sexually explicit) photos of himself,” the affidavit said.
Carruth expressed a desire to travel to Vancouver and have sex with the girl, and he eventually arranged to meet at a motel room, where he was arrested, according to the affidavit. He has been charged with second-degree attempted rape of a child and three counts of communication with a minor for immoral purposes. He is scheduled for trial Sept. 23.
A search of Carruth’s phone revealed extensive communication with Young until Carruth’s arrest, according to another affidavit of probable cause.
Additionally, on Feb. 9, the National Center for Missing and Exploited Children forwarded a cybertip from Facebook, according to the affidavit. A Facebook message sent to all of the friends associated with Young’s account included child pornography, the affidavit said.
On Friday, Young was contacted by cybercrimes detectives, and his cellphone was seized, according to the affidavit. The phone had about 150 videos and photos of child pornography, the affidavit said.
Also found were communications with multiple people in which Young posed as the girl and described sexual acts with an older man, according to the affidavit.
In an interview with police, Young admitted to posing as the girl and Carruth, and that he had viewed more than 10,000 images of child pornography since 2008, the affidavit said.
Using the messaging app Kik, he has traded photos of multiple girls, including the victim, fully clothed or in bathing suits, according to the affidavit. Young gave Carruth the girl’s phone number to facilitate sexual activity and was hoping to receive videos or pictures for his own gratification, the affidavit said.
