Alicia Kozakiewicz

Alicia Kozakiewicz ( ; ), also known as Alicia Kozak (born March 23, 1988), is an American television personality, motivational speaker, and advocate for Internet safety and missing persons. Kozakiewicz is the founder of the Alicia Project, an advocacy group designed to raise awareness about online predators, abduction, and child sexual exploitation. She is also the namesake of "Alicia's Law", which provides a dedicated revenue source for child rescue efforts. Kozakiewicz has worked with television network Investigation Discovery (ID) to educate the public on, and effect change for, issues such as Internet safety, missing people, human trafficking, and child safety awareness education.

At the age of 13 in 2002, Kozakiewicz became the first known victim of child abduction via Internet luring that received widespread media attention. Her story and message have been chronicled on The Oprah Winfrey Show, Good Morning America, Dr. Phil, CNN, MSNBC, and the A&E Biography Channel. She has been the subject of an award-winning PBS Internet safety documentary, Alicia's Message: I'm Here to Save Your Life, as well as the Emmy award-winning Alicia's Story produced by Enough is Enough. Kozakiewicz has been featured in numerous national and international publications, such as People and Cosmopolitan.

Kozakiewicz has addressed the United States Congress on the issue of Internet safety for children and federal child rescue funding.

Abduction

Kozakiewicz had corresponded online with someone she thought to be a girl named "Christine". She continued to do so even after learning that "Christine" was actually a 31-year-old man. That man then introduced her to Scott Tyree, a 38-year-old man who lived in Herndon, Virginia, via a Yahoo chat room. At 4:10 pm on January 4, 2002, agents freed Kozakiewicz. Tyree was arrested half an hour later at his workplace in Herndon.

Aftermath After her rescue, Kozakiewicz was examined at a hospital and released to the custody of Fairfax County Child Protective Services.

In the aftermath, Kozakiewicz developed post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD)

In September 2003, Tyree was sentenced to 19 years and 7 months in federal prison. He was released in February 2019 from the Federal Correctional Complex, Butner and was assigned to a halfway house in Pittsburgh. Kozakiewicz, her family, and multiple members of Congress called for the Federal Bureau of Prisons to move him farther away from Kozakiewicz's family. On March 22, 2019, a judge ruled that Tyree should be relocated. The controversy became moot in October 2019, when Tyree was returned to prison for an additional two years for violating the terms of his parole by visiting pornographic sites. He was released from prison once more on September 22, 2021 but was arrested again in October 2025 and charged with counts of stalking and possession of child pornography.

Advocacy Alicia Kozakiewicz standing before a wall of missing children at the National Center for Missing and Exploited Children headquarters in Alexandria, Virginia. One year after her abduction, at the age of 14, Kozakiewicz founded the Alicia Project. The Alicia Project is an advocacy group that raises awareness and provides education on topics such as Internet safety for children, the prevalence of online child predators, and abductions.

In 2007, she testified before the House Judiciary Committee in an effort to raise awareness of the importance of Internet laws to protect children. Additionally, Alicia's Law funding has enabled Wisconsin law enforcement to add a K-9 officer trained to locate hidden electronic devices. He was named "Kozak" in honor of Kozakiewicz. Kozak was involved in the search for Jayme Closs.

Kozakiewicz's work has been acknowledged by the National Center for Missing and Exploited Children who honored her with the Courage Award in 2007. She was also honored with a Jefferson Award for Public Service in 2009. Kozakiewicz has trained the FBI National Academy, offering insight as part of the "Youth Violence: Victims and Perpetrators" program. In 2013, Kozakiewicz joined the Distinguished Speaker Series at the Clinton School of Public Service. Her 2008 book, an OJJDP publication, You're Not Alone: The Journey From Abduction to Empowerment, is a survival guide for recovered abduction victims.

Education At the time of her abduction, Kozakiewicz was a student at Carlynton Junior/Senior High School. She earned a bachelor's degree in psychology at Point Park University.