David Macek

David after being arrested

**David Macek** was involved in the Riverside, California edition of **To Catch a Predator**. He is known for showing up alongside his friend and suspected predator Sebastian Rodriguez as his "tag along", as well as his endless Rockstar energy drink.

## Biography

David was an unemployed twenty-two-year-old at the time of the sting. He had just recently moved to California from Utah after being dismissed from his job and kicked out from his mother's house. Unknown to David, his friend Sebastian Rodriguez had made contact with a twelve-year-old decoy from Perverted Justice, and would wind up setting up a meeting with the supposed underage girl. Since Sebastian, who was only twenty, was too young to buy the Mike's Hard Lemonade, he invited David to come along with him and buy the alcohol for the girl, who he presumably told David was either sixteen or older.

When the two arrived at the house, David stayed at the door and peered in through the curtain while Sebastian tried to grab Del's attention, not knowing she wasn't a real twelve-year-old girl, only for Chris Hansen to come out and surprise the both of them. While Sebastian became nervous and quick with his answers, David kept a calm, relatively jovial demeanor, stating he wasn't talking to the girl and was simply the tag along, drinking his Rockstar as he answered questions. When Chris revealed with the chat log that the girl Sebastian was talking to was twelve, David immediately looked distraught, losing the grin on his face as he looked at Sebastian and Chris with a shocked expression.

While Sebastian was being questioned, David remained quiet, keeping his calm demeanor and pretending to continue drinking his now empty can out of nervousness. He looked annoyed and disappointed when Sebastian revealed he brought condoms. When Chris asked David what Sebastian told him about what was going to happen that evening, David said he didn't really know what was supposed to be happening, later being questioned some more by Chris before being exposed on television, sticking to his tag along reasoning.

When the two left the house, they could be heard snickering, apparently believing they got off the hook. Instead, they were stopped at the gate leading onto the driveway and arrested by police. After being question, David was released and not charged with a crime, although Chris has since claimed he believed David may have had malicious intent.

## Aftermath

David cut ties with Sebastian following the sting, later getting married and having children. He has continued to deny any knowledge of the girl's age or Sebastian's intent to molest an underage child.

## 2016 Update

Joey reached out to David (now going under a different name) on Facebook in the fall of 2016, attempting to convince him to be interviewed about his experience on the show. Although David seemed open to the idea at first, he later seemed more hesitant, even refusing $20 for the interview. Joey theorized David may have asked a friend if the interview was a good idea and they had second thoughts that David agreed with. Joey would push David, however, trolling him by calling him "famous" and claiming there were women who would love him if he did the interview. Clearly fed up with Joey's attempts to get a rise out of and harrass him, David blocked Joey and has since remained off of the TCaP radar.

## Trivia

* It is still strongly debated by members of the TCaP community as to whether David was innocent or not. Some consider his dedication to the tag along excuse and his snickering after leaving the house to be signs of guilt, although others attribute this to his repressed nervousness during the situation. If he was in fact unaware of Sebastian's true intent and did not know the girl was a minor, he may be the only man ever caught on the show to be innocent of a predatory crime against a minor.
* Chris referred to Sebastian and David as "the Beavis and Butt-Head" of To Catch a Predator, most likely due to David's seemingly more naive and clueless nature. This supposed naiveté is taken into account by fans who believe David to be innocent.