Deputies: Caledonia man offered teens alcohol for sex

CALEDONIA TOWNSHIP, Mich. (WOOD) — Deputies say a Caledonia man has been arrested in an “alcohol for sex scheme” that involved teenage girls.

Bond was set at $500,000 when Scott Elam, 42, was arraigned Thursday afternoon. According to a release from the Kent County Sheriff’s Office, he was arrested Wednesday and jailed on five felony charges: aggravated child sexual abuse activity, aggravated distributing/promoting child sexually abusive material, aggravated possession of child sexually abusive material, using a computer to commit a crime and capturing/distributing an image of an unclothed person.

Last month, detectives say they got a tip that a 17-year-old girl had sex with an adult man in exchange for alcohol.

Investigators allege Elam used Snapchat to “communicat(e) with many underage kids,” court documents show. The 17-year-old told detectives that Scott sold alcohol and vape pens to a number of high schools girls and “would give discount to females if they sent him nude photos or videos.”

Detectives say those teens may be in the Byron Center, Forest Hills, Lowell and Caledonia areas.

“We are working through identifying additional victims,” Kent County Undersheriff Bryan Muir told News 8. “Anytime there’s a case like this where we know there’s a pattern or a trend, we tend to believe there’s more victims out there who have not come forward yet.”

Deputies searched Elam’s house Wednesday and took him into custody, according to the release. Investigators say they also believe he took videos of sexual acts that happened in his home.

The Kent County Sheriff’s Office says it takes part in the Crisis Aid International Child Anti-Exploitation Program, working alongside a team that supports and mentors teens in situations like this.

“It’s an in-house program that was brought in through our Human Trafficking Task Force to work with victims of crimes like this,” Muir explained. “They’ll offer them counseling services and then they’ll connect them to nonprofits and organizations that can provide them long-term service.”

He urged parents to build “open two-way communication” with their kids about the dangers of predators or risky behaviors.

“Make sure they understand the dangers of online activities. Make sure they understand the dangers of communication with adults that don’t have any connection to them,” Muir said. “Anytime you put information out to the internet and to the public, it’s very hard to get rid of it. … So make sure you’re not sending images, especially explicit images, of yourself. Make sure you understand that there are people out there who are going to try to coerce you or force you into doing that. But do what’s right for yourself and keep those images private.”

And, the undersheriff said, parents should call police if their child tells them something suspicious or criminal is happening.

Detectives continue to investigate the case. If you know anything, you’re asked to contact the sheriff’s office at 616.632.6125 or Silent Observer at 616.774.2345.

Elam is expected back in court on July 31 and Aug. 7 for hearings.

For the latest news, weather, sports, and streaming video, head to WOODTV.com.