A San Mateo man is suspected of posing as a teenage girl on Instagram in order to solicit sexually explicit photos and videos from boys between ages 12-15 on the social media platform, police said.
On Tuesday, Wai Kit Ching, aka Raymond Ching, 29, was arrested at his home in the 4300 block of Camden Avenue and subsequently charged with multiple charges including lewd or lascivious acts with a child under 14, contacting a minor with intent to commit a felony and possession of child pornography, police said.
The investigation began in May when San Mateo detectives were contacted by Eden Prairie Police Department in Minnesota about a case concerning inappropriate internet behavior concerning a juvenile boy. They boy had reportedly sent lewd photos and videos via Instagram to someone he believed was a 15-year-old girl named Alicia Harris, but who was actually Ching posing as Alicia Harris, police said.
The subsequent investigation culminated with a search warrant served on Ching’s home on Tuesday that included San Mateo detectives, the Internet Crimes Against Children Task Force and Homeland Security Investigations.
The investigation uncovered Ching had allegedly communicated with hundreds of teenage boys between via these fake Instagram accounts: @alchas04 and/or @alchas04_priv. The victims were mainly White with blond or light hair and within the U.S. and Europe, police said. Investigators believe Ching would solicit photos and video of the victims’ genitalia and of them masturbating for his own sexual gratification.
“We also have reason to believe between December 2019-January 2020, Ching, acting as his true self, invited a San Mateo juvenile male into his home,” police said.
Detectives are looking to identify additional victims, and those who have had contact with ‘Alicia Harris’ or the Instagram accounts.
Anyone with information related to this incident is encouraged to contact SMPD Detective Sergeant Lee Violett at (650)522-7662 or lviolett@cityofsanmateo.org.
