Florida Sex Offender Arrested after Using Popular Bible App to Contact Girls

By Sarahbeth Caplin
Patheos blog
November 7, 2019

https://friendlyatheist.patheos.com/2019/11/07/florida-sex-offender-arrested-after-using-popular-bible-app-to-contact-girls/

The most popular Bible app in the world is made by a company called YouVersion. The Bible App has nearly 400 million downloads and allows users to form “study groups” within the app itself.

Apparently, a registered sex offender in Florida used his profile to befriend underage girls, join their Bible groups, and chat with them outside the purview of authorities.

The tipster learned Kersey was a registered sex offender after looking up his name. She told investigators Kersey’s list of friends consisted mostly of young females. The girls in her church group who accepted his friend request are all minors and “that was concerning to her.”

…

According to the court documents, Kersey did not disclose to [Hillsborough County Sheriff’s Office] any email addresses, websites, and profiles to social media accounts he was using, including the Bible App. Failure to report the information is a third degree felony.

We don’t know if Kersey is a Christian or what (if anything) he talked about with the girls. But much like predator priests who gain unearned trust simply through their job title, Kersey was able to connect with children just by taking advantage of the inherent trust placed in a Bible app. We’re fortunate he was caught before that scheme went any further.