SHADYSIDE, Ohio — A Pennsylvania man is facing a felony charge after authorities say he traveled to Shadyside to meet someone he believed was a 14-year-old child following an undercover investigation.
According to the Shadyside Police Department, officers conducted a weeklong online investigation in which a detective posed as a 14-year-old juvenile.
Police said Jeffery Scott Mills, 61, of Houston, Pennsylvania, continued communicating online after allegedly being told the individual was 14 years old.
Investigators said Mills later arranged to meet the juvenile in Shadyside.
When he arrived at the predetermined meeting location on July 1, officers took him into custody without incident.
Mills was transported to the Belmont County Jail, where he is being held on one felony charge.
He has been charged with importuning, a fifth-degree felony under Ohio Revised Code 2907.07(D)(1).
The Shadyside Police Department said it remains committed to proactively investigating crimes involving the exploitation of children and protecting minors within the community.
The case remains under investigation.
