Across the state, Michigan State Police are looking for as many as 3,400 sex offenders who have not reported where they are living, and 69 of those violators are in Genesee County.
"The sex offender registry has really evolved into a different animal then when it was created. It was supposed to be an investigative tool," said Det. Sgt. Jeff Bauermeister.
And now?
"What we're really looking for is compliance so that we can track these people," Bauermeister said.
The sweep follows October's quarterly verification period which ran through Oct. 15th.
Men and women on the Michigan Sex Offender Registry convicted of sex crimes must verify their addresses quarterly or annually with local police if their conviction is a felony or misdemeanor.
"(The Michigan State Police Flint Post) is in charge of coordinating enforcement efforts related to the sex offender registry and also violation investigations," Bauermeister said.
"Basically go out to find out why people who didn't verify didn't come see us. Some people have warrants and they're reluctant to come in. Some people forget. We have offenders who are dead. We found one of those last week.
"Some of these people, occasionally you run into a couple who just don't feel that they need to do this and we take a little bit of a different approach with that."
On one particular afternoon, we went along as Bauermeister went out to find a man who apparently had moved but did not verify his address change.
He has a misdemeanor on his record.
"I have reason to believe he knows what he's supposed to do," Bauermeister said. "The difficulty I have is somehow the paperwork didn't get completed or if it did it didn't get forwarded to Lansing."
One of Michigan's most wanted sex offenders is now being bars in Missouri. He was just arrested just this month.
At Flint's south-side police mini station, volunteers keep a close eye on their neighborhood and who is living in it.
"We get these periodically," said Bill Fisher.
They are lists of registered sex offenders living in the area are kept updated. Volunteer Fisher says they often take tips from people living in the area and forward them on to police.
Michigan does boast a nearly 95 percent compliance rate when it comes to sex offenders reporting where they live, but police say occasionally there are some who don't feel the need to report.
In the course of this investigation, a 24-year-old was currently found living with his mother on Flint's north side. He was convicted of a misdemeanor and asked that we not show his face.
"I have reason to believe he knows what he's supposed to do," Bauermeister said. "Somehow the paperwork didn't get completed or if it did it didn't get forwarded to Lansing."
It didn't take long to clear his case up. But that's not the case for others.
"I have some offenders in my four years I've been doing this that I've never seen," Bauermeister said.
The registry online has a most-wanted section. Michael Gabbard was featured there.
"Convicted of CSC first degree, which is as bad as it gets," Bauermeister said.
Gabbard was arrested in Missouri earlier this month. He was living in an abandoned home. He is fighting extradition to Michigan.
"I can go out and knock on doors day and night but the people that live next to these people are the ones that provide us with the information that helps make these cases," Bauermeister said.
Police urge you to contact them with tips.
The Michigan Sex Offender Registry can be viewed by clicking here and here.
