Alleged Online Date Rape Serves as Warning To Singles
A daily newsletter I read tipped me off to an unusual date rape case that was perpetrated live, online - a story that I feel is now required reading for singles everywhere.
20-year-old Jonathan Hock was arrested in Monday in Phoenix, Arizona, for streaming a live video feed on February 26th of this year of the alleged rape of a 20-year-old woman who he'd been dating approximately two weeks (although some accounts state the two were dating 'less than a month'). The pair had been partying and drinking earlier in the night before retiring to the woman's home, and when she passed out, Hock logged in to a website he'd streamed video on before to post live time video of his taking advantage of the unconscious woman.
Hock is still jailed, and is facing investigation on two charges of sexual assault, one charge of kidnapping and one charge of taking a surreptitious video. Police are concerned there may be more victims, as Jonathan Hock is a reported online 'celebrity' for videotaping his conquests and posting them to the internet, complete with fan sites and imitators, says ABC News.
Viewers of the video were the first to alert police, although the victim was advised by several friends via phone calls and text messages that photos of her lying next to Hock were posted on the unnamed website. Until then, the victim had no idea the rape had taken place. Affidavits show that Hock admitted while chatting online with the victim that he "admits to doing something" which she was passed out, but denies raping her as it wasn't his style, blaming the over consumption of alcohol as the culprit for his actions.
A spokesperson for the website that posted the still photos the victim was alerted to as well as the original video (which has since been pulled from the website and given to authorities), stated in an interview that the company didn't have an issue with posting such information online, as they felt it was a warning for teenagers and singles everywhere that they should take more precautions before getting drunk with someone they'd met off the internet, as allegedly Hock and the victim met using MySpace.
There will surely be a lot of outrage to many of the details shared here, and I'm interested to see in what you have to say, dear readers. Personally, I feel there needs to be a larger outcry for these types of cases, so that more people aren't taken advantage of, don't put themselves in these kinds of positions in the first place, and know what precautions to take when meeting people off the internet.
Related: What is Dating Violence?, Help for Victims of Dating Violence, Safe Dating Tips.
Sources: Woman Raped Live on Web Site, Man Charged With 'Rape Streamed Live Over Internet', Phoenix Man Streamed Alleged Rape Video Online, Police Say.
Comments
she did not put her self in anything. He’s a criminal. End of story
Bonny,
This is a sad case and I feel horrible for the girl, but it has NOTHING to do with internet dating. I’ve written (on my site) about the fact that I was raped when I was a teenager. I was drunk and someone took advantage of me. This was back before I knew how to use a computer (I’m old- we’re talking the mid 80s).
Anyway, I get really annoyed at all of the fearmongering that goes on about internet dating. It is no more dangerous than meeting someone at a bar or a party (how I met my rapist).
Young drunk women will always be vulnerable. And the men who takes advantage of them are criminals. Can we please stop blaming the internet?
Simone, I’m sorry you feel I’m ‘blaming’ the internet. That wasn’t my intent. The victim initially met the guy from MySpace, but of course these situations can occur when people meet using other forms of interaction too, as you said. My point was more that singles need to take precautions, but especially when meeting off the ‘net because of the familiarity online chat and social networking sites inherently breed. And the reason why I chose the term “online date rape” is because, well, the rape was streamed online, live-time. Its a first to my knowledge, and I hope it never happens again.
Simone I was about to post the same response before I finished reading the comments. I don’t mind the warning to singles to stay safe as there are many dangers out there to be aware of but the headline brought me into the article. You may have not wanted to connect online dating and date rape but the headline does exactly that. When your readers tell other people about what they read here they won’t even say MySpace, it will be “Did you hear about the online dating rapist?! Yeah he even posted the video online for other sickos to watch.”
Whether it’s off the internet or from the street you must be careful with who you become intimate with.
– FEEL FREE TO REMOVE BELOW THIS LINE –
On a side note it names the video site where the broadcast was made and the secondary website admin that actually noticed the content of the images and notified everyone are both listed on the second page of the ABC article.
I agreed the internet has nothing to do with it, you can meet rapists anywhere, there was one in redondo beach, ca meeting women near the pier at different bars just a few months ago, and kidnapping in his van and then raping them, his picture was shown in the news. These women were alone and therefore vulnerable and at night. The worst thing you can do in a date is have alcohol, drinking is definitely not very smart under any circumstances, most people get sleepy and do not have very good reflexes, physically and mentally not aware of the situation.
chord0
First-rate post, thank you for the tips