MTV Reality Star Arrested In FL For Grooming A Minor For Sex: Reports

CLEARWATER, FL — A former MTV reality star was arrested in Pinellas County Thursday on charges out of Illinois accusing him of trying to meet with an underage girl for sex, according to multiple reports.

Connor Smith, 33, who appeared on “Are You The One?” in 2015, was taken into custody in Clearwater and booked into Pinellas County Jail after more than a year on the run, WFLA reported.

The Lake County Sheriff’s Office in Illinois issued a nationwide warrant for his arrest on Feb. 10, 2023, for three felony charges: traveling to meet a minor, grooming and disseminating harmful material.

• Also Read: Orland Park Man Sought In Nationwide Search Remains At Large: Police

Smith communicated with an undercover detective who was posing as a girl younger than 15 years old for several weeks, the agency wrote in a Facebook post last year.

During their conversations, he sent the detective sexually explicit images and videos of himself, LCSO said. He also made arrangements to meet the “girl” for a sexual encounter.

When he showed up to meet the “girl” Feb. 9, 2023, detectives tried to take him into custody, but Smith was able to drive away.

Though he indicated that he would surrender himself to authorities, he never did.

Smith spent more than 13 months as a fugitive before being arrested in Florida.

“He was taken into custody by our agency at 15163 George Boulevard in Unincorporated Clearwater at approximately 12:20 p.m. on March 28,” Sergeant Amanda Sinni with the Pinellas County Sheriff’s Office told People.