George Cacioppo was a senior vice president at Sony Interactive Entertainment. He worked on the PlayStation Network for Sony since 2013. This past weekend, Cacioppo was terminated from his position after he reportedly appeared as the subject in a pedophile sting operation video.
A vigilante group going by the name of People v. Preds attempts to catch and publicize men that are allegedly pedophiles. They post their efforts to their YouTube channel for the court of public opinions to judge. Their latest video, posted earlier this past weekend, had them impersonating a 15-year old boy. The group pretended to be this 15-year old boy and contacted Cacioppo online. Cacioppo then reportedly invited the "boy" to his house for sex.
According to People v. Preds, Cacioppo went by the alias of "Jeff" on the dating app Grindr. The group, posing as the boy, agreed to meet up at "Jeff's" home. The video shows the group approaching the home and greeting an individual who opens the door wearing a "PS5" t-shirt. "Jeff" quickly closes the door on them after they reveal why they're there.
The video does not show any crimes being committed. The group also says that they cannot confirm Cacioppo's identity. However, the group did post a number of screenshots and chat logs that detail the arrangements made between the accused and the 15-year old boy. The group also says that they and "Jeff" exchanged pictures and discussed various sex acts. Included in the images provided by the group is a selfie taken by the accused, wearing the same PS5 t-shirt.
An early morning report by CNET says that Cacioppo has been fired. A representative from Sony says, "We are aware of the situation and the employee in question has been terminated from employment."
People v. Preds say that all of their information has been sent to the San Diego County District Attorney's office.
