COLUMBIANA COUNTY Kentucky man to be arraigned in Internet sex case

The man drove right to the fake address the police chief gave him.
By NANCY TULLIS
VINDICATOR SALEM BUREAU
NEW WATERFORD -- A 54-year-old Kentucky man will be arraigned in Columbiana County Municipal Court on Tuesday on felony charges of attempted sexual conduct with a minor.
New Waterford Police Chief Dan Haueter said Michael Black of Taylorsville, Ky., is being held in Columbiana County Jail with no bond set until after Tuesday's video arraignment.
Haueter said Black drove nearly 400 miles Friday to meet whom he thought was a 15-year-old girl on Taylor Avenue in New Waterford. Based on conversations Black had with Haueter in a teen chat room, police are investigating another case involving a 15-year-old girl in Illinois.
Haueter said he posed as a 15-year-old girl in a teen chat room, and after several days of conversing, Black agreed to drive to New Waterford for sex.
Officers followed man
Officers from the Columbiana County Sheriff's Department and the Columbiana County Drug Task force followed Black in unmarked vehicles as he came into New Waterford on Friday, and his arrest went smoothly.
"He had everything with me he told me he would bring, right down to the teddy bear," Haueter said. "He had a laptop computer so we could look at pornography on the Internet, and he also brought a digital camera."
Haueter said parents in New Waterford have made complaints the past two years about their children corresponding with adults in Internet chat rooms.
Haueter said he has worked on the Internet undercover several different times, and although he has made contact with men before, Black was the first to follow through with a visit.
"It's very mentally draining," Haueter said of the sting operation. "You have to think what you're doing every minute, what you're going to say, what your reaction should be."
Haueter said Black lied about his age, but did not pretend to be a teenager.
"He asked me if I liked older men," Haueter said. "He told me he was 49."
He said that during the past week, Black told whom he thought was the 15-year-old, "I wished you lived closer."
"I asked him why, and he said, 'It would be cool to hang out with you, go shopping -- have sex if you want,'" Haueter said.
Sent pornography
He said Black talked several times of having sex, and sent to the police computer numerous images of pornography, underage pornography and nude images of himself.
Haueter said conversations with Black led police to investigate a case where Black apparently drove about five hours to have sex with a 15-year-old in an Illinois motel room Jan. 18.
"When I told him I'd never had sex before, he told me that was OK, that another girl said that last week and she couldn't say that anymore."
Haueter said Black brought the items he said he would and drove right to the fake address he was given. "There's no question what his intentions were," he said.
"A lot of times this goes on right under our noses and we have no idea because kids don't say anything, and the bad guys sure aren't going to talk," Haueter said. "Statistics show that for the people arrested in these types of stings, it usually isn't their first encounter with underage teens or pre-teens. These guys are slick. They get the kids to trust them -- form a bond. A lot of times this is the only way to catch them."x