They lurked in public chat rooms that were clearly marked for adults only. Their online IDs, while they may have suggested a young age, are not valid. Anyone who uses AOL knows that if you don't generate your own ID, the system will choose one for you randomly. So, jeffny14 or danj13 does NOT necessarily mean it's your age. You could be 82 and still get that screen name generated for you.
Anonymity works both ways.
And they failed to mention how long it took to actually get anyone to try to pick them up. Come on folks. If I hang out on 42nd street in NYC at night, I am likely to get solicited from a hooker. There is nothing surprising about any of this. Yes, there are perverts online.