By Shereen Siewert
WAUSAU — A 32-year-old Plover man snared in an undercover child sex sting in which he asked to “try for a baby” with a person he thought was a 14-year-old girl was convicted Monday of child enticement.
Police say Christopher Smith communicated repeatedly with the “girl,” who was really an undercover officer. He was arrested April 18 after he drove from his Plover home to Weston, allegedly to meet the “teen” in person.
The communication began in mid-April and quickly escalated to a conversation about sex and marriage, according to court filings.
As part of a plea agreement, additional charges of using a computer to facilitate a child sex crime and soliciting an intimate representation from a minor were dismissed but will be read in at sentencing. During a plea hearing, Marathon County Circuit Judge Greg Strasser ordered a presentencing investigation be completed before Smith’s Jan. 2 sentencing date.
Smith, who is free on a signature bond, faces a maximum penalty of 25 years in the Wisconsin State Prison System and $100,000 in fines.
