QC man faces solicitation charge after Predator Poachers-involved arrest

A 38-year-old East Moline man who faces a felony charge of indecent solicitation of a child appeared Friday in Rock Island County Court, where a judge told him he will remain in jail.

Earlier, Brian Taylor thought he was communicating with a 12-year-old girl named Heidi, prosecutors said Friday. He and the girl, who was a decoy created by Predator Poachers out of Houston, Texas, agreed to meet at a McDonald’s in East Moline.

His attorney called Predator Poachers “a vigilante group,” and said Taylor lives in East Moline with his parents. His attorney said his client has “zero history” and has a full-time job. “Heidi doesn’t exist,” he said. “It’s a creation of these Predator Poachers out of Houston, Texas.”

“They were not law enforcement officers,” his attorney said.

The prosecutor said East Moline Police did arrive at the meeting place.

The judge said Taylor will remain in custody in Rock Island County Jail, because he is a possible threat to the community. Taylor is set to appear again in Rock Island County Court on March 26.

Who are the Predator Poachers?

According to its website, Predator Poachers was found in 2019 by Alex Rosen as a “group of independent journalists and private citizens who travel the country conducting intervention-style sting operations to catch child predators.” The group’s mission is “to take pedophiles offline, off the streets, and away from kids, one predator at a time.”

To find out more about Predator Poachers, visit here.

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