Riverside, California

**Riverside, California,** located outside of Los Angeles, was the third investigation of *To Catch a Predator* on *Dateline NBC*.

## Plot synopsis

*51 men are confronted and arrested by Riverside Police over a three day period.*

## Notes & trivia

* Following the release of 65-year-old Charles Harding, investigators seized his computer and discovered evidence of child pornography, as well as his involvement in a 35-year-long exchange ring. Harding later passed away in prison after discontinuing his blood pressure medication, which was necessary for his heart to function properly.
* During the sting operation, four registered sex offenders were arrested. Jean Pierre Wehry, aged 48, had previously been convicted of sexually assaulting the ex-girlfriend of a friend, and was caught attempting to engage in sexual activity with a 13-year-old boy. Due to violating California's three-strike law, he was originally sentenced to three consecutive terms of 25 years to life, totaling 75 years to life. However, this was later reduced to 50 years to life after an appeal. Robert Lyons, aged 68, became the oldest predator caught in the sting. He had previously been convicted of sexually assaulting a 14-year-old boy and was caught attempting to engage in sexual activity with a 13-year-old boy. He was sentenced to five years in prison. Thomas Bodnar, aged 42, had previously been convicted of sexually assaulting three siblings aged six to nine in 1984, and then for orally raping a 15-year-old boy in 1999. He was caught attempting to engage in sexual activity with a 13-year-old boy and was sentenced to 15 years in prison, as well as being labeled a sexual predator. Greg Karnos, aged 49, had previously been convicted of masturbating in front of seven underage children at a high school. He was caught attempting to engage in sexual activity with a 13-year-old girl and was sentenced to eight years in prison.
* 42-year-old Gregory Diederich and 45-year-old Maurice Ruiz made history as the first and only couple on the show who tried to engage in a three-way with the decoy, whom they believed to be a 13-year-old boy. As a result of their actions, they were both sentenced to six months in jail.
* Following their arrests, 32-year-old Keith Williams and 28-year-old Eddie Chan both attempted to contact other Perverted Justice decoys while the organization was conducting a sting operation at Laguna Beach in February 2006. For this, Chan received a three-year prison sentence, while Williams was sentenced to one year in jail.
* 43-year-old Walter Babst, a math teacher at a high school, was arrested for attempting to engage in sexual activity with a 12-year-old girl. In addition to this, he was found to have over 200 images of child pornography in his possession. As a result of his crimes, he was sentenced to one year in jail.
* 25-year-old Michael Seibert was initially arrested for attempting to engage in sexual activity with a 13-year-old girl in Riverside. He was arrested again eight months later when he traveled to a sting house in Long Beach under the impression that he would be having sex with a 13-year-old girl. Seibert was sentenced to three and a half years in prison for his participation in the Long Beach sting. Additionally, he received a concurrent sentence of one and a half years for his involvement in the Riverside sting.
* 30-year-old Michael Burks, who worked as an agent for the Department of Homeland Security, was caught trying to engage in sexual activities with a 13-year-old girl. As a result, he was sentenced to one year in prison.
* William Havey, a 23-year-old United States Marine, was arrested for attempting to have sex with a 13-year-old girl. However, the charges against him were dismissed after the jury was deadlocked in a 10-2 vote in favor of acquittal.

## Predators and Personnel

* A list of people involved in the Riverside investigation.
* Booking Page