11.11.2026 07:50
Cody Plumlee, 34, who wanted to meet at a hotel in the US with a boy he thought was 15, instead found members of a group working to expose child abusers. Plumlee was detained by police and faced various charges. It was stated that the suspect, alleged to be Apple's public relations manager, was not a direct employee of the company and worked at a third-party firm serving Apple.
An operation carried out in New York by the OBL Nation group, which operates in the US to combat sexual crimes against children, resulted in the detention of 34-year-old Cody Plumlee. According to reports by the New York Post and TMZ based on court documents, Plumlee was accused of arranging a meeting for sexual purposes with a boy he believed to be 15 years old.
HE THOUGHT HE WOULD MEET A 15-YEAR-OLD BOY
The incident occurred at the Ritz-Carlton hotel in Manhattan. According to the allegation, Plumlee began messaging a person he contacted through the dating app Grindr who presented himself as 15 years old. The suspect, who is alleged to have sent sexually explicit messages during the conversations, invited the person to meet at the hotel.
However, the person who came to the meeting was an adult involved in the OBL Nation group's operation. When Plumlee encountered the group's members at the hotel instead of the person he was expecting, what happened was captured on camera.
HE WAS DETAINED BY POLICE
According to the New York Post, OBL Nation founder Ramy El-Daly confronted Plumlee at the hotel and asked him questions about the messages. In the recorded footage, the suspect was reported to have talked about his sexual interest in young people.
New York Police Department teams arriving at the scene detained Plumlee. According to information reflected in the court file, the suspect admitted that the person he was communicating with told him he was 15 years old, but he ignored it.
THREE SEPARATE CHARGES AGAINST HIM
Plumlee was charged with attempted third-degree rape, attempted sending of inappropriate content to children, and attempted endangering a child's welfare.
The 34-year-old suspect, who was brought before the court, was released without bail. It was reported that the case is expected to continue in January 2027. The charges against the suspect have not yet been finalized by a court ruling.
THE CLAIM THAT HE WAS AN APPLE EXECUTIVE DID NOT PROVE TRUE
After the incident, OBL Nation claimed that Plumlee was head of the public relations department at tech giant Apple. While the claim quickly caused a wide reaction, new information in the American press revealed a different picture.
According to a New York Post report based on a source close to the matter, although Plumlee stated on his LinkedIn profile that he worked at Apple, he was not a direct employee of the company. It was reported that the suspect worked at a third-party firm providing travel booking services to Apple.
Thus, the initial claims that Plumlee was Apple's public relations manager were not confirmed. No information could be obtained indicating that the company made an official statement on the matter.
AN INVESTIGATION WAS LAUNCHED AFTER THE FOOTAGE
After the confrontation footage recorded by OBL Nation was published, the incident was carried to the international press. While the judicial process continues under the charges submitted by authorities to the court, no statement came from Plumlee's lawyer at the time the news was published.