To Catch a Predator · Petaluma investigation
Mike Vestal
Mike Vestal was arrested during the Petaluma, California investigation. He received 92 days in jail and three years of probation in 2008.
Photo: To Catch a Predator Wiki
- Outcome
- Sentenced
- Evidence
- Attributed reporting
- Jurisdiction
- Sonoma County, California
- Encounter
- Not established
- Decoy posed as
- Girl4
- Case number
- Not established
Personal details
- Born
- October 14, 1968
- Occupation
- Teacher
- Marital status
- Married
- Height
- 5′11″
- Weight
- 185 lb
- Hair
- Brown
- Eyes
- Brown
Charges & sentence
Charges awaiting verification
We have not established filed charges from the available evidence. This is a gap in our research, not a finding about this case.
Sentence
92 days in jail and 3 years of probation; lifetime registration and treatment conditions.
Attributed to the sources below. Consult the original record for full terms.
Case records
Case narrative
Biography
Mike informed the decoy that she wouldn't want to have sex with boys her age when they met.
When Mike arrived at the sting house, he struck up a conversation with the decoy. Chris Hansen emerged and began questioning him. Like most predators, Mike insisted he wouldn't engage in any sexual activity with the victim. Mike kept crying and pleading to be let go with a warning since he believed Chris to be a police officer. Mike walked out of the sting house and was arrested after Chris revealed he was with Dateline and not a cop.
Aftermath
When questioned by a detective, Mike insisted he wasn't planning to do anything and said he went to the sting house because he was "bored." He confessed that he was married for thirteen years.
Mike is still the victim of post-sting trolling as of 2025, mainly whenever he tries to do livestreams or open access Zoom courses.
Community-written, from the To Catch a Predator Wiki. Not independently verified, and it does not establish charges or court outcomes.
Mike Vestal, To Catch a Predator Wiki contributors; see revision and history links. · CC-BY-SA
Media
Sources
- 1Mike Vestal on MegaphonePublic episode metadata matches the publisher RSS recording by title, release date and exact enclosure identifier. Reviewed publisher title/description names this profile as the subject of the recording.
- 2Mike Vestal on SpotifyPublic episode metadata matches the publisher RSS recording by title, release date and exact enclosure identifier. Reviewed publisher title/description names this profile as the subject of the recording.
- 3Mike Vestal official podcast descriptionThe April17,2023 publisher episode explicitly names thirty-seven-year-old Mike Vestal and the thirteen-year-old girl decoy. It gives no court disposition.
- 4Mike Vestal (community wiki)Attributed community article. Revision date describes the article update, not a court or sting event. Full infobox, narrative sections, references and assets are retained in the private archive.
- 5Mike Vestal: legal outcome (revision 15313)92 days in jail and 3 years of probation; lifetime registration and treatment conditions.