A Porter County man is in custody after, according to court documents, he sent sexually explicit texts to a boy, 17, who lived in the Porter home where he sometimes stayed.
Dereck Patrick Moore, 38, who sometimes stayed at a home in Porter and at a Portage motel where he was later arrested, is charged with attempted child exploitation, a Level 5 felony.
Police arrested Moore Monday and he was slated for an initial hearing Tuesday before Porter Superior Court Judge Mary DeBoer. He remained in custody Tuesday afternoon according to online jail records.
The teen contacted Porter Police on Sept. 14 and told them that Moore had been living at his home off and on and had become friends with the boy’s mother, who invited Moore to live with them as needed.
“(The victim) disclosed that Dereck has sent sexually explicit text messages to (the teen’s) phone at various times and requested (the victim) send Dereck nude images of himself,” according to court records.
“(The victim) stated he has never followed through with the request for pictures. However, (the teen) has several male friends (juveniles) who have received similar messages from Dereck.”
In addition to the explicit text messages, court documents allege that Moore was providing the teen with money to buy clothes, shoes, food and fund entertainment.
“(The victim) stated he never had any sexual contact with Dereck but did take him up on multiple offers to receive money,” documents state.
After police took Moore into custody at the Days Inn, 6161 Melton Road, he told investigators he knew the boy and one of his friends were both in high school and acknowledged he lived upstairs in the Porter home for “over a year” and used the residence as a mailing address.
He told police, according to court documents, that he often gave the teen cash because the boy wasn’t as affluent as the rest of his friends.
A brief search of Moore’s cellphone, conducted with his consent, revealed “multiple photos and videos” of naked males “in a sexual manner,” though no faces were visible. Police intend to conduct a more thorough search of Moore’s phone as part of the investigation.