Meta Reportedly Ditches High-Level Facebook Staffer Caught in Child Sex Sting Op

A video posted by an amateur group called PCI Predator Catchers Indianapolis on its YouTube page featured two people questioning Meta/Facebook Manager of Community Development Jeren Andrew Miles, who admitted to engaging in sexually explicit communications with purportedly a 13-year-old boy.

Facebook’s parent company, Meta, has confirmed that a senior staffer is no longer in its employ after a video went viral on YouTube featuring him in an amateur child sex sting operation in Columbus, Ohio, aimed at catching pedophiles, reported TechCrunch.

“The seriousness of these allegations cannot be overstated. The individual is no longer employed with the company. We are actively investigating this situation and cannot provide further comment at this time,” said a statement from Meta spokesperson Drew Pusateri.

Jeren Andrew Miles, of Palm Springs, California, formerly manager of global community development, had been depicted in a two-hour video, live streamed on 16 February on YouTube by an amateur group called PCI Predator Catchers Indianapolis.

While Miles, 35, was not specifically heard admitting to any sex act or the intention to carry one out, he was depicted being interrogated by two people.

In the course of the questioning, he acknowledged he had exchanged sexually explicit texts with a person claiming to be a 13-year-old boy. Furthermore, Miles allegedly made plans for the “boy” to meet him at Le Meridien Columbus hotel. It was at that location that the “Predator Catchers” group interviewed him.

On 18 February other publications picked up the story, with the viral footage reposted on Reddit and other sites.

Meta spokesperson Drew Pusateri failed to specify whether Miles was fired or was forced to resign. According to Ingrid Lunden, a reporter at Tech Crunch, Pusateri tried to persuade her to drop the story.

The group that interrogated Miles in the video is cited by media outlets as having “sent over evidence to the police departments in Ohio and California” in the hopes that an investigation might be launched.

Jeren Andrew Miles, who serves on the board of directors for an LGBTQ+ group, Equality California, has since deleted his social media accounts on LinkedIn, Twitter, Instagram and Facebook.
Furthermore, Equality California is believed to have retroactively ditched Miles from their organisation.

.@Reddit moderators have been trying to censor this story. An account was banned for sharing the original live stream video and other postings are labeled as “misleading” or “questionable.” https://t.co/V0iePnkwKR pic.twitter.com/xEWdKXBwmo

— Andy Ngô ?️‍? (@MrAndyNgo) February 18, 2022

The current sex scandal implicating a staffer at Meta/Facebook, mired in controversy related to data protection and privacy, is noting new for the company.

In 2017, Dov Katz, the head of computer vision at Facebook’s virtual reality subsidiary, Oculus, was replaced following his arrest outside Seattle after allegedly soliciting sex from an undercover officer who he believed at the time to be a 15-year-old girl.