![]() ![]() “We’re gonna advise you you’re under arrest.” Suddenly two police officers wearing bulletproof vests appeared from a back room, ordered him to lie on the floor and handcuffed him. When he got inside, she disappeared down a hallway. “You made it,” she called out and waved for him to follow, court documents would later show. She didn’t look 13 at all, more like she was in her 20s. She came to the door just as she’d said, in torn jeans and gray sweatshirt, as beautiful as her photo. After stopping for condoms, he arrived at 7 p.m., three and a half hours after their first emails. It was a 20-minute drive to the house in suburban Vancouver. Gamer Gurl was beautiful, he thought, if he wasn’t being pranked: Big eyes, cute white cap, soft smile, gazing up at the camera serenely with a really nice set of headphones. She asked for his cellphone number and they switched to texting, exchanging photos. “why did you post an ad in craigslist if your 13? You mean 23?” Fifteen minutes later, Gamer Gurl replied that she was 13. “Let me come watch I haven’t gottn that one yet,” adding that he was 20. “i am HOOKED on ALIEN ISOLATION,” Gamer Gurl replied. “Jus gamer gurl sittin’ home on sunny day,” it read. One Friday after work in February 2017, Hambrick came across a Casual Encounters “w4m” (woman searching for man) post that seemed meant for him. Every once in a while, it worked out: In the past few years, he had sex with five or six women he met this way. He once replied to a post describing an attractive 21-year-old, but when he arrived at the address she gave him, an old man answered the door. People described their appearance in personal ads, then sent photos that didn’t match. Users had to certify that they were 18 or older, but at the time Craigslist didn’t verify users’ age. If people did respond, they often went dark after a few emails. There were so many listings, but when he tried messaging, it was rare to get a response. Starting when he was 18, a few times a month, he clicked through the Casual Encounters section of Craigslist, looking for sex. She would prod him to get out more, but he wasn’t someone who could meet women at a bar. His mother, Kathleen, describes him affectionately as her “introverted, sensitive, immature, coddled, nerdy son.” They are very close. As a boy, he took medication for A.D.H.D. The problem, he knew, was that he was a nerd. He would spend a morning handing out sandwiches to the hungry. ![]() When he and his mother lived in places that had board-game clubs, he was a regular. He was a voracious reader who could knock off a 1,000-page fantasy novel in two days. ![]() Though the two had never met in person, over the last few years they paired up as teammates playing Rainbow Six Siege and Rocket League and grew close.Īt 20, Hambrick was still living at home with his mother to save money for college, where he hoped to study game design. As a video warrior, he was known online by his nom de guerre and was constantly messaging fellow gamers, particularly his best friend, Simon. As a dungeon master in Dungeons & Dragons, he controlled other players’ destinies. People told him it wasn’t smart to be so cut off from reality, but his internet life felt rich. He was hard-core, amassing a collection of more than 200 games. Jace Hambrick worked as an apprentice laborer during the week, renovating homes around Vancouver, Wash., and at a neighborhood gas station on weekends. Or CLICK HERE to download the app in the Apple Store.To hear more audio stories from publishers like The New York Times, download Audm for iPhone or Android. CLICK HERE to download the app in the Google Play store.The app is a free download and provides user-friendly navigation for mobile devices. The official Florida Department of Law Enforcement (FDLE) mobile app now makes it easier to access services provided to the public. ![]()
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