PlayStation Network executive fired following paedophile allegations

George Cacioppo, PlayStation Network senior vice president of engineering, has been fired by Sony after being accused of paedophilia by an amateur sting group. 

According to the group People vs. Preds, Cacioppo, 64, was planning to meet a 15-year-old boy for sex after exchanging messages on the social networking app Grindr. According to the group, Cacioppo was using a fake name, “Jeff,” to masquerade his identity. 

Following this damning accusation by the People vs. Preds group, CNet has reported that Cacioppo has been fired by Sony. “We are aware of the situation and the employee in question has been terminated from employment,” Sony said in an emailed statement. 

Before his departure, Cacioppo had been working at PlayStation for eight years as the senior vice president of engineering at PlayStation Network. Sony has not yet announced his replacement. 

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=14INdlFIe-k

In the video by People v. Preds, which catches Cacioppo outside of his home in a PlayStation 5 shirt, the cameraman claims that they’ll call the police, however, it’s unclear if law enforcement has officially been alerted. In their report, CNet stated that “San Diego Police didn’t immediately respond to a request for comment on the matter.”

Speaking to Kotaku, the People v. Preds group said that the video was released publicly as “the police department doesn’t work with ‘Cyber groups’ like us. That’s when the internet takes over.”