Eric Thornton

Thornton was born in Boynton Beach, Florida, on April sixteenth, 1979.

He originally wanted to join the Navy but could not because of disabilities mentioned . He lived in Jupiter, Florida.

Thorton made the decision to drive four hours to meet with the decoy. When Thorton arrived at the sting house, the decoy, who was an eighteen-year-old actress pretending to be a child, greeted him from another room. Thorton presented the numerous alcoholic drinks and condoms he had brought with him. While he ate a cookie, Chris Hansen appeared and questioned him. Thorton claimed he was there to simply "hang out" and thought it was a "good idea" to visit. He admitted to meeting ten-fifteen underage girls he had met online in person and changed his story several times until finally admitting he had a problem. Thorton claimed that he had gone to counseling a lot of times but stopped after five months. He also admitted he planned to spend the night but wouldn't be "too graphic" until they met. When asked what should happen, Thorton said he should be allowed to go home and "learn" from his mistake. Hansen then revealed his identity, making the cameras to come out. Thorton did not run but instead warned other potential child sex predators not to talk to underage children. He expressed feeling "regretful" and "horrible". Thorton left the sting house and threw himself onto the ground as the police ran towards him. He was arrested with no resistance.

After his arrest, Thorton was charged with a felony count of attempted lewd or lascivious battery with a victim twelve-fifteen years old. Thornton was quickly fired from his job as a catering person.

On May 8, 2007, Thorton pleaded guilty to the felony charge he was up against. He was sentenced to twenty-one months in prison, three years of probation, and was required to register as a sex offender for the rest of his life.

Chris Hansen, in late 2023, tried reaching out to Thornton for a Predators I’ve Caught Podcast. According to Hansen, Thornton was still working as a lawn supervisor.

Thornton died almost exactly month after another predator Michael Warrecker .