Technology can be such a blessing and a curse. In today’s high-tech world, child predators are finding new ways to prey on little ones.
School officials at the Windemere Community Learning Center in Akron, Ohio are on high alert after several witnesses have reported some suspicious drone activity over the playground.
That’s right–drones.
Children have said that on several occasions, a drone has hovered over them while they play, urging them to leave the playground.
“Three to four times, they have seen a drone up over the playground,” principal Megan Lee-Wilfong told Fox 8 Cleveland.
Both children and adults have witnessed the drone, she says, and have heard it speak.
“They shared with me that this drone has some type of voice capability and that they were communicating with the kids that were up here playing, talking to them,” she adds.
Parents were unsettled to hear this.
“That’s scary. I have a daughter, and having some weirdo flying something around?” said Hannah Adkins, a parent.
It is unclear if the police have been notified or if any attempt has been made to locate the drone operator. Lee-Wilfong simply offers up the suggestion that parents have a talk with their children about “stranger danger” and to alert the school district if they see the drone again or anything suspicious around the playground.
This is a frightening new dimension of predatory behavior. Fortunately, these children were smart enough to not be tempted to leave the playground at the behest of a flying robot, but they also could have been frightened. What of a slightly older child who is interested in the cool drone?
Child predators are smart, and they most likely know children will be interested in a drone. This is unlikely to be the first time some sicko out there tries this! It is also worth noting that drones are often equipped with cameras, so who knows what kind of footage of small children could be gathered this way.
If you see a drone hovering around children, take a picture, alert the police, and see if you can tell where the operator is. Don’t take any chances.
Please share this article with your children, friends, family, and school administrators to warn them of this potential threat!
