That’s the message from Riverdale Police Chief Casey Warren after David Soriano, 23, was booked into Weber County Jail on Friday on suspicion of numerous charges, including rape of a child, enticing a minor, sodomy on a child, sexual exploitation of a minor and sexual abuse of a child, according to the Weber County Sheriff’s Office website.

According to a release sent by Warren, there were 23 charges overall, which also included distribution of a controlled substance, furnishing alcohol to a minor and providing nicotine products to a minor.

Warren said because of social media, there are “so many opportunities” for people who are out to contact juveniles and compared social media now to the park when he was a kid.

“When I was a kid, you were worried about the guys driving by at the park and talking to the kids at the park,” he said. “Well, we’re in the 21st century. They’re not driving through the park necessarily. … Now they’re surfing through your kids’ social media accounts … trying to locate a vulnerable victim. So picture it that way.

“When we send our kids to the park unattended, we’re very concerned that someone could contact them or harm them or take them … but the one thing that sometimes we forget is in today’s world, sometimes they’re just as vulnerable getting on social media because they have thousands of predators that are surfing the internet looking for victims.”

Explaining the pervasiveness of the issue, Warren guessed that no matter the size of a community, there’s at least one active case similar to this one.

“And the larger the agency, obviously, the larger the city you live in, the more cases there probably is,” he said. “But I would dare say, doesn’t matter the size of the community, there’s always at least one or two cases going in every city. So that puts it into perspective. If you think you live in a small, rural area, this stuff doesn’t happen, I bet if you spoke to your local chief of police or your local sheriff, they would tell you otherwise.”

According to the release, the police department was notified on or about Aug. 19 of a reported sex offense involving multiple juveniles and possibly an adult male suspect in Riverdale.

“Investigators learned that multiple juveniles were allegedly being enticed through the internet and social media to engage in sexual acts in exchange for nicotine products, alcohol, and THC,” the release stated. “Over the course of the investigation, Riverdale Police Department officers and detectives worked diligently to identify the juveniles involved, locate additional potential victims, and identify the suspect.”

The release went on to say Riverdale Police Department detectives located the suspect and executed a number of search warrants and that the suspect admitted to “engaging in sexual activity with multiple minors” during the preceding several weeks.

“The Riverdale Police Department would like to recognize and thank the detectives and officers who worked tirelessly over the last several weeks to identify the victims, locate the suspect, gather evidence, and bring this investigation to this point,” the release stated.

“Riverdale PD encourages parents to have regular conversations with their children about online safety, unfamiliar contacts, and individuals who may attempt to exploit or entice minors through social media or other internet-based platforms.

“Anyone who believes they or their child may have been the victim of an internet-related crime or sexual exploitation is encouraged to contact their local law enforcement agency as soon as possible.”

Contact Standard-Examiner editor Ryan Comer at rcomer@standard.net.