ORLANDO, Fla. -- "I think that's kinda wrong for them to do that to a bunch of kids that are only 15 year olds and they just ripped us off," says one girl. She had dreams of becoming a model but, after spending hundreds of dollars on a photo shoot, she has nightmares about the man who took those pictures.

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Not only did girls in Orlando feel ripped off by the modeling scam, then they learned the man who stole their money is also accused of sex crimes against many of his clients. The accusations stretch all the way from Central Florida to Las Vegas. Orlando just seems to be the latest.

Dozens of local teenagers came to a downtown hotel to meet with Scott Riddel (photo left), the owner of a Las Vegas modeling company. He held photo shoots and had promises of stardom to offer. That was all the way back in early May. That was the last time they'd see him, and now they are frantic over what he may be doing with their pictures.

It was a typical pageant, except the contestants for Miss Teen Orlando were young, like 15-year-old Teresa Pogue, with hopes of eventually becoming a model.

So when Scott Riddel, the owner of American Model Search, whose Las Vegas-based company had a booth at the pageant, called and offered to help, she jumped at the opportunity.

"I was excited. I was like, yeah. I've always wanted to do it, every time since I was little," says Teresa.

So as she and others met for their photo session, the parents paid up to $700 each. The problem, the photos never came.

"And I called three times a week for over a month," says Teresa's mother, until finally, one day, she heard a recording that the number was no longer in service.

As a matter of fact, there was no way to get in touch with the Riddel, whose website suddenly didn't work and whose business closed down.

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The reason: Ridell was now behind bars, accused of doing more than just taking a 14-year-old girl's picture, but also molesting her. When news broke, another five girls came forward with the same story and one of Riddel's photographers was charged with child pornography.

On top of it all, a spokesperson for Nationals Incorporated, the company that put on the pageant, told us it never had any formal affiliation with Riddel, but let him set up a booth and talk to girls because he helped provide a judge for the pageant.

Never, however, did they conduct a background search. If they had, they would have learned Riddel was already wanted in Colorado for indecent acts with a teenage girl and was a registered sexual offender.

By the way, Riddel is currently being held without bond in a Las Vegas jail.