Already required to register in sex offender registry as a sex offender for the rest of his life, a Roscommon man has pleaded guilty to a federal life offense for trying to solicit who he thought was an underage girl for sex.
Joseph D. Grad appeared before U.S. District Judge Patricia T. Morris in the federal courthouse in downtown Bay City and pleaded guilty to one count of attempted enticement of a minor. The charge is punishable by up to life in prison; however, Grad’s sentencing guidelines range from 10 to 24 years. The conviction mandates five years of supervised release following a term of imprisonment.
An officer with the Richfield Township Department of Public Safety was using a Facebook account to pose as a 15-year-old girl when, on April 20, the account received two unexpected and private messages from Grad’s Facebook account, the affidavit states. Grad and the undercover officer messaged back and forth, with transcripts of their conversations contained in court files. The exchanges show Grad’s account almost immediately began sending messages of a sexual nature.
Grad repeatedly asked the teen”for lewd photos of herself and sent her numerous photos of himself, his dog and his penis, the plea agreement states. He went on to tell her he wanted to meet up with her and gave explicit descriptions of sex acts he wanted her to perform on him.
The undercover officer posing as the teen asked Grad to meet her in a Roscommon Park. Grad agreed, detailing sex acts he was hoping to engage in. The officer asked Grad to bring protection and Mountain Dew.
A team of law enforcement officers set up around the park in question while another team watched Grad leave his apartment, records show. An undercover officer was in the park, wearing a disguise to appear as a teenage girl, court records state.
As Grad approached the undercover officer, other police arrested him. In his possession were a bottle of Mountain Dew and two Trojan condoms, the plea agreement states.
On being interviewed by investigators, Grad admitted to initiating contact with the supposed minor, asking for lewd photos, and sending photos of himself. Investigators later searched through Grad’s Facebook account and found the same conversation the undercover officer had engaged in with it.
Grad in 1998 was convicted in Roscommon County Circuit Court of second-degree criminal sexual conduct with a victim younger than 16. The following year, a judge sentenced him to three to 15 years in prison. The Michigan Department of Corrections discharged Grad in May 2013.
The conviction requires Grad to register as a sex offender for the rest of his life. In 2015, he was convicted of failing to register as such and was sentenced to 20 months to four years in prison.
