A Michigan man who exposed child predators online for his thousands of social media followers was shot and killed after confronting two teenagers late Friday night, according to police.
Robert Wayne Lee, 40, of Pontiac, also known as "Boopac Shakur" online, would often pose as a 15-year-old girl to expose alleged predators.
Shakur Shot After He Punched one of the Teens
He published videos of his exploits to over 11,000 followers on Facebook and over 45,000 followers on Instagram. Some of those videos appear to show him engaging in violent confrontations with alleged predators.
Videos that Lee posted to Facebook showed him confronting the men he corresponded with while posing as a minor in the style of the show To Catch a Predator.
Authorities say that Lee accused one of the teens – one, 17, and the other, 18 years old - at a local restaurant of being a pedophile and punched him—leading one of the boys to pull out a knife and the other to fire a gun. The suspects fled but were later arrested.
Shakur 'Mistakenly Identified Someone as a Sexual Predator Who was Not'
Although Lee's "one-man crusade has led to the arrest and criminal charges being filed against several men," the Oakland County sheriff's office said in the release, "he has also mistakenly identified someone as a sexual predator who was not."
"While we certainly understand his desire to hold child predators accountable, many times well intentioned individuals who engaged in this don't know the standard of evidence required for convictions and often underestimate the potential for violence confronting a suspected predator," Sheriff Michael Bouchard said. Detectives are expected to turn the case over to prosecutors for charges on Sunday or Monday, police said.
GoFundMe for Shakur's Daughter
A GoFundMe to benefit his daughter said Lee "dedicated his life to protecting the innocence of our children from those with malicious intentions. Through his courageous efforts, he successfully exposed 132 predators who sought to harm our community's youth."
