Convicted kidnapper filmed sex acts with missing MI teen, feds say. ‘Delete everything’
A Michigan man is accused of filming himself engaging in sex acts with a teenage girl who was missing for months, federal officials say.
She was found in a Detroit home approximately three months after she went missing and had an iPhone containing videos of Devan Eric Cook engaging in sex acts with the then 14-year-old girl, according to a criminal complaint filed on Feb. 21.
Now, Cook is facing a child pornography charge in connection with the three videos filmed between Nov. 24 to Nov. 26, according to court records.
Cook’s attorney declined McClatchy News’ request for comment on Feb. 27.
The teen met Cook shortly after running away from home in October, officials said. Cook offered to take her to his residence for sex acts, and she “went to say with” him at a Redford apartment, the FBI said in the criminal complaint.
The teen told Cook that she was a runaway and that she was 14 years old, the FBI said. She said Cook became upset when she told him this, saying “he could not get caught up with her” because of his prior conviction, according to court documents.
Cook operated under the alias of Eric Slope, according to the FBI, and investigators matched a Facebook profile created under the alias to the man seen engaging in sex acts with the missing teen on video.
The now 15-year-old was found on Jan. 19 after her mother contacted a non-government organization with information about her daughter, according to the FBI.
Investigators searched her phone and identified Cook in the videos, court documents said, and then questioned him.
Shortly after Cook’s interview with investigators, the teen’s phone received a text that read, “delete everything,” according to the criminal complaint.
Cook was on parole for a prior unlawful imprisonment conviction, according to court documents.
Redford is about a 20-mile drive northwest from downtown Detroit.
This story was originally published February 27, 2025 at 12:24 PM with the headline "Convicted kidnapper filmed sex acts with missing MI teen, feds say. ‘Delete everything’."
