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Sex offender accused of soliciting teen girls on Bible App

Court records showed the Tampa man was designated a sex offender in 2013 after sending an 11-year-old girl sexual messages in a chat room.
Credit: Hillsborough County Sheriff's Office

TAMPA, Florida — A registered sex offender was arrested by Hillsborough County Sheriff's Office after they said he used the Bible App to talk to teenage girls who are in a church youth group together. 

Douglas Earl Kersey, 50, was found out after a "confidential source" came forward saying she was suspicious about how the majority of Kersey's contacts on the Bible App were underage girls, according to a probable cause warrant filed in the Hillsborough County court.

Kersey's status as a sex offender and the conditions of his probation said that he has to report his email addresses and user names to the state. Investigators said Kersey did not tell them about his email address or his user name, Doug K, on the Bible App.

Court records also showed that in 2013, Kersey was found guilty in Leon County for sending messages that were sexual in nature to an 11-year-old girl in an iPod chat.

Kersey served over two years in prison for the crimes of sending harmful communication to a minor and using a two-way communication device to commit a felony.

Kersey now faces two counts of failure of a sex offender to register electronic mail addresses or internet identifiers. 

He was arrested on Sept. 24 and released on bond on Sept. 30. Kersey entered a plea of not guilty. His next court date is Dec. 4. 

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