Investigators arrested five registered sex offenders earlier this month for illegally using the popular social networking site MySpace.com.

Attorney General

Attorney General

Daniel Trowbridge

“Each of the registered sex offenders arrested during this operation were (sic) originally convicted of crimes involving young children,” said Texas Attorney General Greg Abbott, in a news release. “Despite clear legal prohibitions, all five of these sex predators accessed MySpace.com. Parents and children alike must remain vigilant about the dangers posed by online sex predators.”

Attorney General

Joel Jones

Attorney General

Thomas Lyman

On July 1 investigators arrested Daniel Louis Trowbridge, 47, in Seguin, for using the Internet in violation of his release terms. He was convicted in Travis County in 1980 for indecency with a child. His victim was an 11-year-old girl.

“These arrests reflect MySpace.com’s ongoing willingness to work cooperatively with law enforcement. However, until MySpace.com and other social networking sites implement true age verification software, dangerous sex offenders will continue using these Web sites to prey upon young children,” Abbott said.

Other registered sex offenders arrested in the sweep include:

-- Charles Cathey, 52, of San Antonio. In 1988, Cathey was convicted of aggravated sexual assault of a 7-year-old child and sentenced to 35 years in prison.

-- Scott Charles Spencer, 39, arrested July 1 in Alvarado; convicted in Johnson County in 1990 for indecency with a child by sexual contact. His victim was a 12-year-old girl.

Attorney General

Scott Spencer

-- Thomas Lyman Warren, 64, arrested July 1 in Houston; convicted in Harris County in 1984 for injury to a child. His victim was two years old.

-- Joel Wayne Jones, 40, arrested July 2 in Port Arthur; convicted in Jefferson County in 1994 for indecency with a child by sexual contact. His victim was an 8-year-old girl.

In May, the Attorney General's office subpoenaed sex offenders’ user profiles from MySpace.com. As a result, the network provided Abbott with data from Sentinel Safe, which MySpace hired to compile and verify its users.