A 68-year-old North Lauderdale man nicknamed "Pops" is accused of having sex with a girl under the age of 16 and talking about having sex with other children.
Alphoso Butler and the girl were found Tuesday by Carl Michael Pitts, an investigator with the non-profit Anti-Predator Project.
The organization helps find missing persons and human trafficking victims across the country, according to its website.
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"I just beat the bushes, gathered intel," said Pitts, a retired law enforcement officer who volunteers to find missing children and help police who are "overwhelmed."
In this case, the girl’s family called the group Monday after she disappeared on April 23. Pitts questioned several people who knew her. One friend was able to call the girl who said she was with “Pops” and they had sex, according to the arrest report.
The investigator drove through the neighborhood and eventually saw Butler and the girl in the front yard of a home in the 6200 block of Southwest Eighth Street in North Lauderdale.
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"She was on a bicycle with a mask on [and] an older gentleman was on the front porch," Pitts said. "She was scared."
Pitts called the Broward Sheriff’s Office and deputies arrested Butler.
They took the girl to a sexual assault treatment center where she told detectives she met Butler last year and had engaged in sex acts with him on three occasions, twice at his home, the report stated.
Detectives also obtained an audio recording of Butler talking about having sex with other minors.
During questioning, Butler denied it. He said he only let the girl sleep in his car and once rented a hotel room for her, detectives said.
Butler is charged with three counts of lewd and lascivious acts on a child between the ages of 12 and 16.
He remains in the Broward County Jail on bonds totaling $75,000, records show.
The South Florida-based Anti-Predator Project can be reached at 305-796-4859.
