The investigation is active at this time and anyone who has information related to the case can call the Snohomish County Sheriff’s Office tipline at 425-388-3845.
SNOHOMISH — A 22-year-old Everett man is in custody for child pornography crimes that were revealed after an investigation of an anonymous bomb threat at Glacier Peak High School that occurred in mid-November.
In an investigation that included obtaining a search warrant for child-porn suspect Sira Swope’s home, investigators allege he made contact with girls as young as 8, and is suspected of two counts of indecent exposure in Marysville. In one incident, he is alleged to have exposed his body parts and handled himself in a visual-violation against a 14-year-old girl as she was walking to her bus stop in Marysville. The incident was reported in November of last year, after the girl told her mom it happened.
Forensic detectives are determining the number of children Swope may have communicated with online. No physical contact with alleged victims is known, at this time.
Swope was arrested during a traffic stop in the 6200 block of Broadway at around 10 a.m. on Feb. 4. Law enforcement had a search warrant for Swope’s home, located in the 11600 block of 51st Drive SE.
Police obtained a search warrant and located the username “sytheasianguy” on Snapchat. The username posted a “selfie” of an Asian male wearing dark rimmed glasses and a black hooded sweatshirt partially covering his face. He used various emails including miyaishorny5@gmail.com and chris.dragondreamer@gmail.com, court documents state. Court documents say he was at one time a member of the U.S. Air Force enlisting in March of 2017 and dismissed in September of the same year. Court documents do not disclose the reason for his dismissal.
Swope was booked into Snohomish County Jail last week after being charged with possessing and viewing depictions of minors engaged in sexually explicit conduct, as well as cyberstalking and threats to bomb property, at Glacier Peak.
A sheriff’s office press release said the suspect used social media to communicate with children locally and in the state of Iowa. He allegedly “groomed and manipulated multiple child victims to send him sexually explicit photos and videos,” the Snohomish County Sheriff’s Office said. Grooming is when a perpetrator gains the trust of his victim. That may start with mildly inappropriate behavior and progress.
In Mount Vernon, Iowa, late last year, he was under investigation for allegations that he had sent nude photos of himself to a 13-year-old girl.
He submitted an application to be a babysitter in 2018, through snagajob, and police found multiple email exchanges in which he was attempting to secure work as a babysitter in various areas. He was in contact with a Lake Stevens parent for a babysitting job and in mid-January received return contact to babysit for a Snohomish family.
His recorded searches included maps for directions to various parks including McCollum Park in Everett and Jennings Park in Marysville. On September 10, 2018, his online searches included one for Glacier Peak bus routes, and “how long does it take
for a girl to get drunk,” as well as a search related to the legality of upskirt photos, court documents state.
Court documents say an email by an anonymous sender was received by Glacier Peak staff in mid-November that included emojis of bombs, and said explosions would occur “throughout the building” in the early morning and during lunch.
The Washington State Patrol Intra-Agency Bomb Squad and multiple K-9 teams responded with K-9 assistance to examine the area. The school was cleared by 1 p.m. with no explosives found. Evening activities and next-day classes resumed as usual that afternoon, a letter to families said.
No suspects were determined on the day of the bomb threat, so an investigation began on that incident.
Glacier Peak staff provided School resource officer Deputy J. Schwartzmiller with an internet protocol (IP) address that would later connect investigators to the suspect’s home. A search warrant was obtained and investigators found sexual messages to minors as well as a prolific email effort, by Swope, to obtain work as a babysitter.
His mistreatment of girls is alleged back to December of 2015. Past school district reports say he sent inappropriate images to a girl who said he was harassing her and inappropriately touched her. She did not want to press charges then. In February of 2016, she told a school counselor he was making her uncomfortable prompting a call to police, but she still did not want to pursue prosecution, documents state.
In January of 2018 Swope was suspected in a child pornography case but police could not locate him. Swope used the Facebook name “‘Jake Blade,” court documents said.
The sheriff’s office says the suspect used Snapchat and care.com for the purpose of contacting minors. Care.com is a website to help locate people for child care, home cleaning, and elder care. Snapchat is a social media application on cell phones that causes texts to disappear after they are read.
“Detectives can and did recover photos sent on Snapchat,” said Courtney O’Keefe, a sheriff’s office spokeswoman. She said it is believed that Snapchat photos are gone once read, but in reality they are “still out there and can be accessed.”
O’Keefe said the incident is a moment to remind parents to talk to their children about online contact. If it makes them uncomfortable, they should tell their parents. The school district policy echoes that sentiment: “Be observant and let us know if you see or hear something that makes you feel uncomfortable, nervous or frightened. Please contact us if you have a concern or question about school policies or your child’s safety.”
