Colleton County man charged with attempted sexual exploitation of a minor

CHARLESTON, S.C. (WCSC) - A Walterboro man is facing 10 charges after investigators say he attempted to solicit a person say he believed was underage and sent explicit images to a person he believed to be underage.

Michael Patrick Lies, 31, is charged with three counts of criminal solicitation of a minor, one count of first-degree attempted exploitation of a minor, and six counts of attempted dissemination of obscene material to a person under age 18, according to a release from the attorney general’s office.

Investigators say Lies solicited a person he believed to be underage for sex, encouraged that person to produce child sexual abuse material and sent sexually-explicit images to a person he believed to be underage.

Mount Pleasant Police arrested Lies Wednesday, attorney general’s spokesman Robert Kittle said.

Each of the 10 charges is a felony. If he is convicted on all 10, he could face up to 110 years in prison.

Jail records indicate a judge set bond at a total of $145,000. Lies remained at the Al Cannon Detention Center as of Thursday afternoon.

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