If one can be a fan of a police department, I am a huge fan of the Huntington Beach, California, Police Department. For years they’ve been at the forefront of catching craigslist creepers in their area. As an aside, creeper is the term we used where I grew up for guys who like children. Getting back to the subject at hand, I’m afraid that the HBPD may have dropped the ball in this case, at least in the way the incident is being reported.

27-year-old Darreck Michael Enciso, of Adelanto, California, is accused of allegedly posting an ad for Disneyland tickets on craigslist in exchange for what some reports are calling very explicit sex acts. Enciso is a former dishwasher at a Disneyland resort. The Huntington Beach Police Department responded to the ad posing as a 14-year-old girl. Enciso allegedly had no problem with the girl being 14. They are said to have arranged to meet for sex in exchange for the tickets, and at the time of his arrest, the suspect had condoms on him.

Now, while I’m not defending the suspect, because by most accounts he didn’t have problems with the ‘girl’ being underage, my problem was with how the ad was posted, or at least how it’s being reported how it was posted.

Enciso is accused of posting a Craigslist ad on July 1 seeking women willing to engage in sex acts in exchange for tickets to the Disneyland parks.
—The OC Register

Prosecutors say Enciso allegedly posted a Craigslist ad dated July 1 seeking women who would engage in sexual acts in exchange for tickets to Disneyland.
—CBS Local

On July 1, 2015, Enciso is accused of posting an ad on Craigslist seeking women willing to engage in sex acts in exchange for tickets to the Disneyland parks.
—Orange County DA’s office press release

All the reports I’ve read said that Enciso placed an ad looking for women. To me that implies an adult. Would the HBPD posing as an underage female not be considered a form of entrapment? Don’t get me wrong. I want to see this guy put away in the unhappiest place on earth, but I want to make sure he’s there the right way. It could be that he did post an ad making an allusion to minors, but that’s not how it’s been reported.

Either way, law enforcement is looking for other possible victims…

Investigators believe Enciso previously posted similar advertisements on Craigslist. Anyone with additional information is asked to contact Supervising Dist. Atty. Investigator Mark Gutierrez at (714) 347-8794.

Hopefully the HBPD has not let their fanboy down, and it’s just a case of miscommunication to the press.

UPDATE 11/8/2015: Enciso has pleaded guilty and will spend a year in jail, five years on probation, and a lifetime on the sex offender registry.