PORTLAND (AP) – An online sting operation by an Oregon-based civilian watchdog group that targets suspected pedophiles has led to two arrests in Maine.

Two men – one from Augusta and the other from Biddeford – were arrested last week after they allegedly arranged to meet a fictitious 13-year-old girl from South Portland.

The person posing as the girl was a volunteer for an organization based in Portland, Ore., called Perverted Justice that works with law enforcement to search out pedophiles on Internet chat rooms.

Police said one of the men nabbed in the sting was an employee of the University of Maine at Augusta who used at least one of the school’s computer to solicit sex.

Michael Dow, 39, was arrested Friday in Augusta on a charge of soliciting a child by computer, police said Tuesday. The computer in question was seized by investigators and Dow was released on personal recognizance.

In the other case, Brian Cadorette, 24, of Biddeford, was arrested Saturday at the Maine Mall in South Portland on a charge of attempted gross sexual assault, a felony.

While both Dow and Cadorette allegedly arranged meeting times and places with the 13-year-old, the Augusta man did not follow through on the arrangement, police said. Nevertheless, Dow had already broken the law during his talks with the Perverted Justice volunteer and police decided to make the arrest in light of his job and proximity to young people, said Detective Sgt. Steve Webster of the South Portland Police Department.

“Students will be coming back soon, so we sped up the process a little bit,” Webster said. “We were in contact with the university.”

The department contacted Perverted Justice in June and asked that it be notified about possible criminal activity by Mainers online.

“It’s a small way for us to be proactive in the area of Internet crime,” Webster said. “Most departments just don’t have the resources or manpower to have someone sitting at the computer all day.”

A Perverted Justice volunteer from outside New England has been posing in chat rooms as the 13-year-old South Portland girl. Chat logs show the volunteer was first approached by Dow on July 24, said Xavier Von Erck, founder of the group. Cadorette first made online contact on July 27.

Chat logs and other online evidence compiled by civilian groups are relatively new to Maine and it’s not clear how the cases will play out in the legal system.

“It is really not on the radar screen yet,” said Walter McKee, president of the Maine Association of Criminal Defense Lawyers.

Perverted Justice and other online civilian organizations have been criticized elsewhere for coercion, entrapment and unprofessional methods. While he could not comment specifically on the group, McKee expressed a general skepticism.

“When you have people taking matters into their own hands, you have chances for abuse and compromised cases,” he said.

The two arrests could be just the beginning in Maine. Von Erck said his group has a couple more agreements with departments in the state, but he declined to name them.

South Portland Police Chief Ed Googins likened the role of Perverted Justice to that of any member of the public who provides information to get an investigation under way.

“It can be a call from a concerned parent,” Googins said. “We have to have enough information to start with, then we will take it from there.”

Webster said the department researched the history and activity of Perverted Justice before contacting the group.

“They seem to have their act together and do it right,” Webster said. “That’s a very valuable asset for us.”

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