Accused child molester David John Sprong Jr.


Since Oprah launched the Child Predator Watch List in 2005, vigilant viewers have helped authorities catch some of America's most wanted fugitives.

In February 2007, law enforcement officers captured the seventh accused child molester featured on The Oprah Show. David John Sprong Jr., a repeat sex offender, is now behind bars.

Sprong has a long history of heinous crimes against children. In 1992, he was convicted of molesting his girlfriend's young daughter and raping a teenage runaway. He served just five years for his crimes and was released.

Then, in 2005, two more girls came forward claiming he had molested them. While awaiting trial in California, Sprong jumped bail. He fled to Texas, where he spent several months running an auto shop. After seeing himself on America's Most Wanted, he moved to Louisiana and got a job at a junkyard.

The police were not far behind.

Police officers who captured Sprong


Acting on tips from Texas, police tracked Sprong to Holden, Louisiana. The chase was finally over…or so they thought.

As the officers approached Sprong with their weapons drawn, they say he ran for his truck and made one last attempt to escape. This time, however, he did not get away.

Sprong was arrested and extradited back to Sacramento, California, where he is awaiting trial on six counts of child molestation. If convicted, he could spend the rest of his life in prison.

The FBI says Sprong's arrest wouldn't have happened without a critical tip that came from two brothers in Humble, Texas.

Kenneth and Cody Oakes receive their reward.


Kenneth and Cody Oakes first met Sprong when he moved to Humble and began running an auto shop in town. It wasn't long before Kenneth and Cody say they began to have suspicions.

"I told my brother there's something strange about this guy," Cody says.

The brothers say Sprong tried to entice young girls to work at his shop. A local teen who was employed by the convicted sex offender says he made inappropriate advances and sexually explicit comments towards her.

Kenneth and Cody thought Sprong was strange…but they were shocked by what they saw on television in January 2007. Kenneth says he was watching America's Most Wanted when he saw Sprong's picture flash across the screen. "I was like, 'Man, that's that guy next door,'" he says. The next morning, Kenneth and Cody called the authorities.

"I have children, and I think that people who do this need to be prosecuted," Kenneth says. "I wanted to catch him. I wanted him behind bars so he couldn't hurt another little kid."

When Kenneth and Cody gave police the tip that led them to Sprong, they didn't know Oprah was offering a $100,000 reward to anyone who aided in the capture of a man on the Child Predator Watch List. But they do now!

Oprah gives each brother $50,000 to thank them for helping take another fugitive off the streets. "I hope you put it to good use," she says.