A 35-year-old Indiana woman was arrested after she was found to have sent sexual images and videos to an 11-year-old Florida boy she met while playing video games online. Tabitha Palmer was charged thanks to a cooperative effort between the Lakeland Police Department Special Victim’s Unit and the Columbia City Police Department, who became aware of the inappropriate relationship in June 2021.
- The relationship between Palmer and the boy began in May 2021. They started talking on Discord, with Palmer regularly steering the conversations in a more sexual direction. In only one month, they exchanged more than 14,300 messages.
- Detectives uncovered some extremely disturbing content from Palmer. Not only did she expose the victim to extremely explicit photographs and conversations, she also encouraged him to do things of a sexual nature. It wasn’t long before Palmer and her location were identified and a warrant was issued for her arrest.
- The 11-year-old boy wasn’t Palmer’s only victim. After her arrest, Palmer admitted sending the lewd images and asking the boy for inappropriate photos of himself, as well. However, she also revealed that she’d sent similar images to at least three otehr boys between the ages of 12 and 14. While investigators are working to find those boys, it’s believed none live in Florida.
- Thankfully, the boy’s mother stopped this abuse in its tracks. As Chief Ruben Garcia said in a statement, the fact that Palmer was caught relatively quickly was down to the victim’s mother monitoring her son’s devices. “Thankfully, this child’s parent was vigilant in reviewing the electronic device he was using and reported the illegal content immediately. It is crucial for parents to monitor their child’s digital activity because you never know who is communicating with your child online. We are grateful for the outstanding work of the detectives in this case and the many other efforts the Special Victim’s Unit engages in to safeguard our most vulnerable citizens from those who would prey on them,” he said.
- Palmer is now facing serious charges and prison time. She was charged with nine counts of distribution of harmful material to a minor, one count of computer pornography, and one count of unlawful use of a two-way communication. All charges are third-degree felonies and Palmer is currently being held without bond at Whiteley County Jail in Columbia City, Indiana awaiting extradition to Florida.
