RACINE, Wis., Dec. 23 (UPI) -- Former Racine, Wis., mayor Gary E. Becker has pleaded guilty to arranging a sexual rendezvous with someone he thought was an underage girl, court records show.
The Milwaukee Journal Sentinel reported Becker pleaded guilty Tuesday to charges of attempted second-degree sexual assault of a child and child enticement-sexual contact arising from a sex sting operation by state agents while he was in office.
Becker, 52, was charged in January after an agent with the state's Internet Crimes Task Force posed as a 14-year-old girl in sexually explicit online conversations with the then public official.
During those conversations, the agent made arrangements with Becker to meet in person to have sex and he was arrested Jan. 13 at the prearranged meeting point.
The sex sting operation began after a Racine City Hall information technology worker allegedly discovered child pornography images on Becker's personal computer in December 2008.
The Journal Sentinel said six additional charges against Becker, including three counts of possessing child pornography, were dismissed under the plea agreement.
Becker now faces as much as 45 years in prison at his March 3 sentencing.
