CRUZ BAY — A former St. John resident who now lives across Lake Pontchartrain in New Orleans suburb was rebooked on three additional counts of computer-aided solicitation of a minor, authorities said.
Joseph Haidler of Mandeville, was first arrested in St. John and was extradited back to Louisiana in July of 2020 on charges of trafficking of a child for sexual purposes, rape, and computer-aided solicitation of a minor, court records indicate.
After his initial arrest, Louisiana State Police discovered that Haidler continued to use the social media app “Snapchat” to solicit girls between the ages of 13 to 15 for sexually explicit content, court documents say.
During a police investigation, troopers found the names of at least 1,000 potential victims Haidler reached out to via Snapchat.
Haidler would send pictures of a bank statement depicting thousands of dollars asking young girls if they wanted a sugar daddy, according to the Louisiana State Police.
Haidler was out on bond when officials learned that he solicited additional victims.
In December of 2020, Haidler’s mother contacted the Virgin Islands Free Press and asked if the previous article could be removed from the website.
“Our family is devastated by this situation,” Jill Haidler told the V.I. Free Press. “There are always two sides to every story. My husband and I believe in him and will stand by him as all of our extended family will because they know him and the type of individual he is. Joey is a decent and good person. He lived on St. John for four years. He stayed for Hurricane Maria and was instrumental in helping rebuild. He helped so many. It is a small island, you can inquire and ask people, he owned and operated a company that installed internet systems. That is just one good thing and there are many others.”
“This year has been a living nightmare with our family situation and all that has happened in our world,” Jill Haidler added on December 15, 2020. “I guess I was hoping for a Christmas miracle and that people want to help each other when possible.”