St. Louis County man gets 5 years for soliciting child pornography from undercover officer

ST. LOUIS COUNTY (KMOV) -- Robert L. Payne of St. Louis County was sentenced to more than five years in prison for seeking nude pictures from an undercover police officer posing as a teenager.

The U.S. Attorney’s Office of the Eastern District of Missouri said in a press release that Payne, 77, watched and attempted to talk to young boys at Fenton City Park in March. The St. Louis County Police Department investigated Payne’s activity near the park after receiving complaints about him.

Payne talked to a police officer pretending to be a 16-year-old at the park, the U.S. Attorney’s Office said. Payne offered to perform a sex act on the officer. He later called the officer and asked for nude pictures.

Payne pleaded guilty in federal court to solicitation of child pornography. He had previously been ordered to stay away from Minnie Ha Ha Park in 2018 after the Sunset Hills Police Department investigated him.

Payne will be on supervised release after serving his prison sentence and has been banned from all parks, playgrounds and other places where children may be.

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