Tech exec nabbed in underage sex sting
{{#rendered}} {{/rendered}}Dov Katz was arrested Dec. 21 near Seattle in a police sting operation. (Carnegie Mellon University)
A top tech executive was arrested Wednesday near Seattle after police said he tried to pay for unprotected sex with a girl he allegedly thought was 15 years old.
Dov Katz, the head of computer vision at Oculus VR, was charged with attempted commercial sexual abuse of a minor after he allegedly fell victim to an undercover sting operation orchestrated by the Tukwila Police Department, Gizmodo reported.
A 38-year-old Israeli citizen who lives in America, Katz told cops when he was arrested “that he was there to rescue [the girl] and call the police,” according to charging documents.
{{#rendered}} {{/rendered}}“I told Katz he should’ve called the police first,” an officer wrote.
Katz came to the hotel after allegedly texting for hours with a police officer who portrayed herself as an underage teen.
“Can I be honest with u? I’m new to all this and a little younger then my ad says but I promise u won’t be disappointed,” the officer texted, according to the charging documents. When Katz asked “How much younger?” the undercover officer told him “15” and asked that he not “say anything ok?”
{{#rendered}} {{/rendered}}“Katz replied ‘sure’.”
Katz’ arraignment was set for Jan. 5, KING5 reported.
Facebook acquired Oculus VR in 2014.
{{#rendered}} {{/rendered}}Carnegie Mellon University listed Katz as a postdoctoral fellow at the school's robotics institute. He is no longer a member of the institute, according to its website.