Conway Man Charged After Online Predator Sting Group Confronts Him

CONWAY, Ark. – A 21-year-old Conway man faces eight felony child pornography charges after a social media group that confronts suspected predators caught him allegedly sending sexually explicit messages to someone he believed was a 15-year-old girl.

Ryan Matthew Herr was charged Sept. 22 in Faulkner County Circuit Court with eight counts of distributing, possessing or viewing sexually explicit conduct involving a child. Each count is a Class C felony punishable by three to 10 years in prison and a fine of up to $10,000.

Herr was booked into the Faulkner County Detention Center on Sept. 22, jail records show. A judge set his bond at $1 million during his first appearance Sept. 23, according to a court order.

Officers were dispatched Sept. 1 to a sexual offense call at Herr’s apartment in the 300 block of Mildred Street after a group called PredsvPrey made contact with him there, according to a search warrant affidavit.

PredsvPrey is a social media channel whose content creators “catch and confront adults having sexual misconduct with children,” the affidavit said. The group found Herr had allegedly been talking with a decoy posing as a 15-year-old girl, and the conversations were sexually explicit.

Herr allegedly talked to the decoy about sex acts and sent her a photo of his genitals, the affidavit said.

Herr voluntarily drove himself to the Conway Police Department to speak with detectives about the accusations, according to the affidavit. During the interview, he allegedly admitted using his phone to communicate with a female he knew to be 15, sending her a photo of his genitals and engaging in sexually explicit conversation with her on Snapchat.

Herr signed a consent form allowing detectives to search his phone, but Detective Cameron Rogers also obtained a search warrant for the device, court records show. Faulkner County Circuit Judge Charles E. Clawson III signed that warrant Sept. 2. It cited internet stalking of a child, a Class B felony.

While searching the phone, Rogers found four photos of a girl who appeared to be between 10 and 12 years old, according to a probable cause affidavit. The images were allegedly screenshots of a FaceTime call between Herr and the girl, with Herr’s face visible in the corner.

Rogers also found Herr allegedly talking on Snapchat with a girl who turned out to be a 16-year-old high school student, the affidavit said. The detective contacted the girl’s father, who later reported finding a nude video and explicit photos of his daughter saved in her Snapchat conversation with Herr.

A search warrant for Herr’s Snapchat account turned up four sexually explicit videos of the 16-year-old, the affidavit said. Rogers wrote that he confirmed her identity by comparing details in the videos, including her fingernail polish, marks on her hands, her bedsheets and her shorts, to photos provided by her family.

The videos were sent to Herr after the girl told him she was 16 on July 17, according to the affidavit.

Herr also allegedly met with the 16-year-old near her home. That meeting happened outside Conway police’s jurisdiction, but location data indicates it was set up while Herr was in Conway, the affidavit said.

“This behavior shows that Ryan is not hesitant to contact, meet, or send/receive sexually explicit images involving minors aged 16 years and younger,” Rogers wrote.

If Herr is released on bond, he must wear an electronic monitor and may not use or possess any device capable of accessing the internet, according to a court order. He is also barred from places where children gather, including parks, schools, playgrounds, day cares and pediatric clinics, and may not possess firearms while the case is pending.

A separate order issued Sept. 23 prohibits Herr from having any contact with the 16-year-old or her immediate family.

Herr was ordered to hire an attorney and is scheduled to be arraigned at 9 a.m. Oct. 26 in Faulkner County Circuit Court. According to Faulkner County Jail records, Herr remains in jail.