Tristyn Bailey Family, SJSO and Homeland Security host a safety event for cheerleaders

The Tristyn Bailey family, the St. Johns County Sheriff’s Office (SJSO) and Homeland Security Investigations (HSI) will host an online safety presentation for cheerleaders at the Tocoi Creek High School Auditorium on May 8 at 6 p.m.

According to SJSO, HSI special agents will assess topics and record tactics used by adult predators online; growing trends in sextortion; information detected from external devices; and apps, online games and social networks that children use.

Scenarios based on local studies of online child victimization will also be assessed.

The presentation uses Project iGuardian, HIS’s awareness campaign, Know2Protect: Together We Can Stop Online Child Exploitation.

According to the HIS website, Project iGuardian, the official personal education arm of the Know2Protect campaign, focuses on protecting children and teens from online predators through education and awareness.

“The project is an outreach effort to share information about the dangers of online environments, how to stay safe online and how to report abuse and suspicious activity,” they said. “Additionally, the iGuardians team is here to help children stay safe online by providing safety tips, a number to call and a website with links to more information and resources. Project iGuardian helps kids, teens and parents get smarter about online safety and stay safe from online sexual predators.”

According to the Department of Homeland Security, Know2Protect is a national public awareness campaign that educates and empowers children, teens, parents, trusted adults and policymakers to:

• Prevent and combat online sexual exploitation and abuse of children.

• Explain how to report online temptation and victimization.

• Provide resources for victims and survivors and their supporters.

Tocoi Creek High School is located at 11200 St. Johns Parkway.

In 2021, Tristyn Bailey was a seventh grader attending Patriot Oaks Academy in Saint Johns County. On Sunday, May 9, hours after the Bailey family reported her missing, she was found dead in the woods east of the cul-de-sac on Saddlestone Drive. The Charger cheerleader had been stabbed 114 times.

Fourteen-year-old classmate Aiden Fucci, the last person seen with Bailey the night she disappeared, was arrested on first-degree murder charges for Bailey’s death. In March 2023, Fucci was sentenced by a judge to life in prison for first-degree murder. R. Lee Smith in a St. Augustine courtroom.

This article originally appeared on St. Augustine Record: Tristyn Bailey Family, SJSO and Homeland Security host safety event