A 33-year-old California man has been accused of pretending to be an actor from the Twilight films and sexually molesting a 14-year-old girl in Iowa. David LaVera reportedly started a conversation with the young teen over Facebook. He then traveled from his home to Newton, Iowa, where she lives, to meet her AND use his "fame" to appear at local schools and even sign autographs for unsuspecting fans of the vampire film series.
LaVera allegedly impersonated actor Kiowa Gordon, who plays werewolf Embry Call -- Jacob's BFF -- in Twilight. He was so convincing that two middle schools invited him to speak at assemblies and perform stunts for the kids. That would have been bad enough, but then LaVera reportedly decided to pick up the 14-year-old he had met through Facebook and drive her to a park, where he allegedly touched her inappropriately. Police say he then drove around town with the girl until her sister told her family where she had gone.
Teens say LaVera also attended an eighth grade pool party -- which is incredibly creepy -- and tried to get another 14-year-old girl to accompany him into the woods.
Shortly after the incident in the park, police arrested LaVera and found two swords and knives in his car. He was charged with enticing a minor, carrying weapons, and failure to have a valid driver's license.
Cops are still investigating this case and haven't ruled out the possibility that there were other young victims targeted by LaVera, considering how many teens -- and adults -- really believed he was Gordon. It's been awhile since some of us have seen Twlight, so to jog your memory, this is Gordon:
In case you're wondering, the real Kiowa Gordon is not happy about this and has let the world know. On his Twitter page, the actor recently posted: "I am deeply saddened that there is a person out there trying to impersonate me and do harm to young girls. My heart goes out to their families and anyone else who has been deceived or hurt by his actions."
How can we keep our teens from communicating with adults on social media sites?
Images via Amazon/Jasper County Sheriff/Instagram