Married 64-Year-Old Travels 1K Miles to Meet Age 9 Girl. Greeted by Worst Nightmare Instead
Here at Liftable, we want to share compelling, uplifting stories with you, stories that warm your spirit and point you to the good in the world.
Sometimes, though, we find ourselves having to tackle challenging topics and downright disturbing occurrences.
This story is one of those. On Sep. 13, 2017, an Austin, Texas, resident named Mark Andrew Nichols made a 1,000 mile trip from his home to the Sunshine State.
Prior to his jaunt to Florida, you probably would’ve thought Nichols was a pretty ordinary 64-year-old man. He was married, a father of two children, and a seemingly upstanding citizen.
But that all changed when he responded to a vaguely worded online advertisement. “Experienced parents to learn new things about raising little ones,” it read.
Nichols reached out to the mother and father who purportedly placed the ad, and during the discussion, the couple mentioned they had a 9-year-old daughter.
They told Nichols they wanted to jump start the girl’s modeling career and asked him about his “interests” (their wording) in her.
It quickly became evident that those interests didn’t center on the finer points of childrearing. Nichols wanted one thing: sex with a minor.
Via email, he spelled out his willingness to participate in any number of erotic scenarios with any and all of the family members — but he was especially interested in the 9-year-old. “I want to be respectful and just provide you all with a fun, safe experience,” he wrote.
The ad-posting parents asked Nichols if he’d ever made sexual advances toward his own children, and he said he hadn’t. Then they set a date to meet him in Orlando.
So far, this tale sounds like the worst sort of horror, a glimpse into the world’s rotten corners.
But when Nichols got off that plane after traveling 1,000 miles to meet a 9-year-old girl, he didn’t realize that he’d be greeted by his worst nightmare instead.
See, the people on the other end of that computer weren’t despicable perverts. They were police officers conducting a sting, and Nichols had blundered right into it.
He was promptly arrested and charged with attempted sexual battery on a child under the age of 12, attempted lewd or lascivious conduct, solicitation of a minor via computer, obscene communication, and unlawful use of a two-way communication device. Officers also discovered he was carrying candy and sexual paraphernalia.
Fortunately for all involved, this was a set-up and a would-be sex offender was stopped. Though this tale ended well, it’s a sober reminder of the evil lurking just out of sight and the need to fight it.
Here’s to hoping law enforcement and anti-human-trafficking organizations across the globe can continue to stamp out this menace. Orlando Police stated on social media, “We’ll never stop going after predators.”
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