Pennsylvania journalist arrested, charged with trying to meet underage girl for sex
CENTRE COUNTY, Pa. (KDKA) -- A man from Central Pennsylvania has been arrested and charged with trying to meet an underage girl for sex.
54-year-old Christopher Morelli is accused of trying to arrange a meeting with a 14-year-old girl.
Morelli, who is the managing editor of the Centre County Gazette in State College, was arrested on Wednesday following an in-depth investigation by the FBI.
Police say the investigation began in July when Morelli was messaging on a social media app with who he thought was a 14-year-old girl in 8th grade, who turned out to be an FBI agent who was undercover.
Morelli then tried to get the girl to send him explicit photos and said that the two could meet at a hotel, according to police.
In the fall, FBI agents in Pittsburgh passed the investigation off to the FBI in State College, who also received help from Spring Township Police, who arrested Morelli on Wednesday.
In the wake of the arrest, the Centre County Gazette says that Morelli has been indefinitely suspended from his role as the managing editor of the newspaper.
Morelli is facing charged of unlawful contact with a minor and criminal use of a communication facility. He was arraigned on $250,000 bail and is scheduled to have a preliminary hearing in early January.
