![\"Dustin](\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/07\/Dustin-Lampros.jpg\")
<\/p>\n
Dustin “Scrappy” Lampros stands outside his MMA training gym wearing his Meta Glasses he uses to film people suspected to be child predators in Sunrise, Fla., on June 29, 2026. (Natasha Holt for Fox News Digital)<\/p>\n
Lampros had just recommitted to his faith, he told Fox News Digital. He\u2019d started praying to know God\u2019s will for his life.<\/p>\n
He was stunned when his friend demonstrated the problem.<\/p>\n
It took minutes to create a fake profile for a 13-year-old girl, “Amy,” on a platform known for facilitating connections.<\/p>\n
TIKTOK IN LEGAL HOT SEAT AS STATE ACCUSES APP OF EXPOSING KIDS TO HARMFUL CONTENT WHILE MISLEADING PARENTS<\/a><\/p>\n It took seconds for men to make contact. “We had multiple grown adults reaching out trying to talk to who they thought was a 13-year-old,” Lampros said, fuming at the memory.<\/p>\n That sparked painful memories.<\/p>\n “Two people close to me in my life were victims<\/a>,” he said, including a close childhood friend. “He was raped by our principal from sixth to eighth grade.”<\/p>\n Dustin “Scrappy” Lampros spars with a teammate during training at MMA Science Academy in Sunrise, Fla., on June 29, 2026. (Natasha Holt for Fox News Digital)<\/p>\n SAN FRANCISCO ARCHDIOCESE AGREES TO $395M SETTLEMENT WITH 530 CLERGY ABUSE SURVIVORS<\/a><\/p>\n Lampros felt a calling on his life.<\/p>\n “Instantly, I knew that I was meant to do something.<\/p>\n “I could help.”<\/p>\n Bait and switch<\/p>\n Now, the 32-year-old professional fighter coordinates with people across the country who work as decoys posing as children. They converse online. They exchange photos.<\/p>\n Once an in-person meeting is arranged, and plans for sexual activity are discussed, Lampros prepares to pounce.<\/p>\n At the agreed-upon time, he waits outside the meet-up location. And when he spots the person who\u2019s been communicating with the child, he places a 911 call to police.<\/p>\n Then, he strolls inside. Coolly and confidently, he walks up and addresses his “target” by name.<\/p>\n Immediately, Lampros pummels them with questions about why they\u2019re there, who they\u2019d planned to meet, and what they\u2019d planned to do. He films the interactions on Meta glasses.<\/p>\n Dustin “Scrappy” Lampros spars with a teammate during training at MMA Science Academy in Sunrise, Fla., on June 29, 2026. (Natasha Holt for Fox News Digital)<\/p>\n “I’ve gotten really good at getting these guys to just kind of \u2026 admit everything to me,” he said. Twice, his targets were women. One was a law enforcement officer. Several have been teachers.<\/p>\n When their answers to his questions don\u2019t match the conversations decoys shared with him in screenshots, he brandishes his phone.<\/p>\n “I have all the messages right here,” Lampros reveals.<\/p>\n When police arrive, he turns over the messages and his video of the “catch,” as he calls it, as evidence.<\/p>\n He credits his MMA training and his faith for his ability to stay calm.<\/p>\n “Inside I’m fuming, I’m boiling,” he said.<\/p>\n “The goal is to get these guys arrested, charged, and convicted, and I know that if I put my hands on them, or if I act out, I know that that can affect the case. So, therefore, I keep myself calm, and keep myself composed.”<\/p>\n Fighting to protect children<\/p>\n Lampros trains at the MMA Science Academy in Sunrise, Florida. The other fighters and coaches celebrate his successes, said the gym owner, Roger Krahl.<\/p>\n By sparring with him and helping him hone his skills, they feel they play a role in his mission, he said.<\/p>\n But they\u2019re mystified by how Lampros refrains from flexing his fighting skills when interacting with alleged child predators.<\/p>\n “We tell him all the time,” Krahl said. “But he\u2019s got the perfect personality for it. He stays very calm and keeps his cool, which is obviously a big thing in the cage.<\/p>\n “When you get in there and fight, you\u2019ve got to be calm under pressure. You\u2019ve got to be able to think.”<\/p>\n MMA Science Academy owner Roger Krahl (L), stands with Dustin “Scrappy” Lampros (C) and MMA coach Troy Worthen (R) in Sunrise, Fla., on June 29, 2026. (Natasha Holt for Fox News Digital)<\/p>\n Lampros has completed about 100 catches since 2022<\/a>. About 10 have resulted in convictions, he said. Others still simmer in the legal pipeline.<\/p>\n “The cases take years,” he said.<\/p>\n Meanwhile, his technique has evolved, even softened, he admitted.<\/p>\n He used to order catches to do pushups while waiting for police. Now, he coaxes alleged predators to discuss details on video that can be turned over to police.<\/p>\n “He\u2019s very comfortable,” Krahl said, adding that he doesn\u2019t worry about the 5-foot-7 fighter\u2019s safety.<\/p>\n “Obviously, he can protect himself. He\u2019s a high-level professional athlete.<\/p>\n “Even though he\u2019s a smaller guy\u2014a bantamweight, 135 pounds\u2014I wouldn\u2019t worry about him versus anybody. Just a trained professional athlete versus an untrained person is not even fair.”<\/p>\n MMA Science Academy owner Roger Krahl (L), stands with Dustin “Scrappy” Lampros (C) and MMA coach Troy Worthen (R) in Sunrise, Fla., on June 29, 2026. (Natasha Holt for Fox News Digital)<\/p>\n Lampros and his decoy helpers don\u2019t coordinate with law enforcement. He reveals the details when he calls police.<\/p>\n “I tell them exactly what’s going on, that there’s a grown adult coming there to meet what they believe is a 13- or 14-year-old to engage in sexual activity.”<\/p>\n When officers don\u2019t arrive quickly, Lampros stalls.<\/p>\n Twice the situation spiraled dangerously, he said. Once, a man he was questioning pulled a gun from his car. Lampros and his helper fled. Another man wielded a boxcutter during their interaction.<\/p>\n \u2018God\u2019s will\u2019<\/p>\n Lampros isn\u2019t deterred. If he\u2019s ever badly injured or killed during a “catch,” he\u2019ll know he was doing God\u2019s will, he said.<\/p>\n “It took years for police departments and state attorneys to actually look at us as legit and to make these cases stick,” Lampros said.<\/p>\n Now, about every month, a years-old case yields a conviction, he said.<\/p>\n Some lawyers in Florida advertise that they can help defend accused child predators who interacted with Lampros. They accuse him of being a vigilante. They subpoena him for depositions. Some insist he\u2019s “just in it for the clicks,” he said.<\/p>\n But no matter the cost, Lampros said he\u2019s in this fight for the long term.<\/p>\n He won\u2019t stop working to expose child predators<\/a>, he said. And when his MMA fighting career is over, he hopes to travel the country, educating parents about how to protect children from online dangers<\/a>.<\/p>\n Before starting 561 Predator Catcher, Lampros said he was where any young, professional fighter would want to be.<\/p>\n He\u2019d moved from Illinois to South Florida, a hub for the sport. He had a 7-0 record in cage fights, with five knockouts.<\/p>\n Dustin “Scrappy” Lampros spars with a teammate during training at MMA Science Academy in Sunrise, Fla., on June 29, 2026. (Natasha Holt for Fox News Digital)<\/p>\n His sole focus: becoming a fighter for the UFC<\/a>. The Ultimate Fighting Championship is the world\u2019s largest professional MMA organization<\/a>.<\/p>\n But, “I felt very empty,” he said. “My whole identity had been behind being an MMA fighter, being \u2018Scrappy\u2019 the fighter. I knew that having UFC as my idol wasn’t gonna fulfill me. That’s when I realized there’s got to be something more for me.”<\/p>\n He started praying, he said, “asking for His will to be done in my life.”<\/p>\n It was then that he was introduced to the idea of catching child predators. “When you start focusing on God’s plan, the doors kind of open up.”<\/p>\n![\"MMA](\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/07\/Dustin-Lampros-kick.jpg\")
<\/p>\n![\"MMA](\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/07\/Dustin-Lampros-spars.jpg\")
<\/p>\n![\"MMA](\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/07\/Dustin-Lampros-outside-gym.jpg\")
<\/p>\n![\"Dustin](\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/07\/Dustin-Lampros-in-gym.jpg\")
<\/p>\n![\"MMA](\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/07\/Dustin-Lampros-spars-1.jpg\")
<\/p>\n