SALT LAKE CITY — It's been one month since 15-year-old Alisa Petrov walked away from her school and disappeared, starting a search that recently led to charges being filed against two men who had contact with the South Jordan girl before she went missing.
Despite the charges and one arrest, Petrov has yet to be found. The South Jordan Police Department believes she is trying to meet people she talked with through various social media platforms leading up to her disappearance.
The mystery surrounding Alisa's whereabouts is sadly not surprising to the Internet Crimes Against Children task force in Utah, which said one in five children is sexually solicited online.
“That’s a high stat, and so I want parents to remember that … it’s kind of not if, it’s when,” said ICAC Training Coordinator Michelle Busch-Upwall.
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Busch-Upwall explained that the grooming process is something all parents need to watch out for, and shared tips on how it works.
"Predators will send [children] gifts in the mail so they can either say it’s a phone, so they can talk to them nonstop like a burner phone. They will go to all lengths to get these children."
The ICAC recommends keeping a close eye on your child's anxiety and isolation tendencies.
“Emotionally, [do they] pull away from family and friends, things like that. Stays on the computer/phone nonstop,” shared Busch-Upwall.
Shayna Richard, the founder of Light the Way, a missing persons advocacy group, is also familiar with the severity of online dangers.
“The best way to protect your child is to really educate yourself and educate them, too, on like who might be out there and what they might be trying to get from them,” said Richard.
Parents should educate themselves by keeping up with the most popular phone apps and doing their own research.
"Have open, honest lines of communication with your kids, [that's] the most important thing because kids are walking out the door with these powerful computers and they can talk to anyone in the world," said Busch-Upwall.
As the search for Alisa stretches into its second month, Richard wants to be sure her face stays out there:
"The best way to bring Alisa home is to not let her story be forgotten.”
