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Man in “Anxiety War” video found guilty

Posted at 11:07 PM, Jul 07, 2016
and last updated 2016-07-07 23:07:28-04

GRAND RAPIDS, Mich. — One of the seven men accused by an online vigilante of being a child predator was convicted in court Thursday.

Philip Crawford, 32, was found guilty by a jury on a charge of accosting children for immoral purposes. He’s scheduled to be sentenced in August.

Crawford was one of seven men brought to the attention of Grand Rapids police by Zach Sweers; an online vigilante who posts videos of his encounters with suspected predators under the moniker “Anxiety War.” Sweers would pose as a teenage girl and make contact with men seemingly looking for sex. He would arrange for them to meet in real life and record their meeting.

In February, Sweers turned over his online documentation as well as video evidence to the police, who interviewed and arrested the men.

Sweers is now facing legal trouble of his own, as he claims he’s being sued by one of the suspects he brought to police.