Linton man nabbed in online sex sting

By Nick Schneider, ASSIGNMENTS EDITOR

A 60-year-old rural Linton man was arrested on a warrant Thursday night after he allegedly tried to solicit what he thought was 14-year-old girl in an online computer chat room sting operation that dates back to 2005.

The would-be 14-year-old girl turned out to be an FBI agent, who was posing as a teen to seek out would-be sexual predators.

Phillip E. Caldwell, Route 4, Box 236, is also accused of sending to the would-be-teen girl nude photographs of himself and a video clip of lewd acts of child pornography

“That's his (the FBI agent's) job to seek out would-be perpetrators,” said Linton Police Chief Troy Jerrell speaking of the FBI agent who with Caldwell.

Caldwell faces four felony charges in the Greene County case that involved a joint investigation by Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) agents in California and Indiana, as well as the Linton Police Department.

He was arrested on a state warrant charging him with one count of child solicitation - a class C felony and three counts of disseminating material or conducting lewd performances with a minor - all class D felonies.

The Greene County man was taken into custody at his home at about 10:30 p.m. by LPD detective Duane Collenbaugh. He was incarcerated in the Greene County jail and is being held without bond pending his initial court appearance.

Jerrell said Caldwell allegedly struck up a conversation with the “teen girl” in a chat room and soon the tone of the chat turned sexually explicit.

“Caldwell started to educate the 14-year-old on sex and intercourse,” the police chief said.

Jerrell said the rural Linton man also transmitted nude photos of himself to the disguised FBI agent in California, as well as a video clip of child pornography and other graphic scenes.

The California-based FBI agent contacted the Bloomington FBI Bureau office in August 2005, which in turn contacted the Linton Police Department about the allegations. The FBI obtained search warrants to review records of the online chat between its agent and Caldwell.

Detective Collenbaugh was assigned the case and worked with the FBI to seek information that was used to obtain an arrest warrant after filing a probable cause affidavit with the court.