A Carrollton man has been charged with indecent solicitation of a child after a sting by a predator hunting group.
The 39-year-old man was charged Aug. 3 with traveling to meet a minor, possession of methamphetamine, indecent solicitation of a child, grooming, and solicitation to meet a child.
The sting was set up by people associated with Online Predator Intervention, which took credit for the sting on social media posts and posted videos on its website.
According to court documents, on July 31 the suspect used Grindr to discuss having sex with a person he believed was a minor, used electronic devices to “seduce, solicit, lure or entice” a child, traveled from Carrollton to the Walgreens on Washington Avenue in Alton to meet the the minor, and was found to be in possession of less than 5 grams of methamphetamine.
According to a petition to deny pre-trial release filed by Madison County State’s Attorney’s Office, officers with Alton Police Department met with the man after being informed that someone in a vehicle matching the suspect’s was at Walgreens to meet a person he believed was a 14-year-old boy to engage in sex.
