Man Sentenced After Pleading Guilty To Soliciting Child Pornography

COLUMBIA, MD — A Howard County man has been sentenced after pleading guilty to a charge of solicitation of child pornography.

According to the Howard County Office of the State's Attorney, Michael Hincke, 40, of Columbia has been sentenced to 18 months in the Howard County Detention Center after entering a guilty plea. Howard County detectives executed a search warrant on Hincke’s home in February 2025 after receiving information that he had child pornography. Detectives discovered that Hincke was engaged in an online conversation with a 16-year-old minor from whom he solicited sexual images and videos, prosecutors stated.

Once Hicke is released from jail, he will be placed on five years of supervised probation with the sexual offender unit and will be required to register as a Tier II sexual offender for the next 25 years, prosecutors stated.