MAGNA, Utah — Police say a privately run group called the Predator Poachers has helped them in arresting a man they accuse of sexual exploitation of a minor and failing to register as a sex offender.
Michael Oren Riser, 69, was arrested by the Unified Police Department on Wednesday and faces a charge of sexual exploitation of a minor. He is being held without bail as investigators claim he has multiple warrants for his arrest for failing to register as a sex offender.
Court filings disclose that Unified police officers were called to the area of Wickiup Lane and Autosome Lane in Magna on Wednesday by the Predator Poachers. One of the group's leaders told detectives that he had been posing as a minor online and that Riser had shown up to a meeting to engage in sexual relations.
According to investigators, the group showed the chat logs of the vigilante posing as a 13-year-old in a conversation with Riser. During that conversation, police say Riser messaged his desire to engage in sexual relations with the 13-year-old.
During the investigation, police discovered that Riser had an active warrant for his arrest for failure to register as a sex offender. They also found that Riser allegedly was keeping a phone with child sexual abuse material in his shed behind his home.
Investigators found the phone, and Riser showed them where he had kept the materials.
Officials are asking the court to hold Riser without bail, claiming he is a transient who has only been in Utah for a few months after coming from Alaska.
