Man Attempted To Lure Boy, 14, At Park In Mercer County: Police

A Burlington County man thought he was going to a park in Mercer County to engage in sex with a 14-year-old boy earlier this week. What 54-year-old Joseph Coleman didn’t realize is that the boy was actually an undercover detective with the Mercer County Prosecutor’s Office.

Coleman was arrested on Wednesday, Sept. 5, and charged with second-degree luring of a child and second-degree attempting to engage in an act of sexual penetration with a child, Mercer County Prosecutor Angelo J. Onofri announced.

“We want offenders to know we are out there online, protecting our children,” Onofri said. “We will aggressively pursue and prosecute those predators that attempt to exploit and harm the most innocent of victims.”

The Mercer County Prosecutor’s Office opened an investigation into individuals trying to exploit children online in July. A detective working undercover posing as a 14-year-old boy, responded to an online ad and triggered more than 100 email exchanges with Coleman, according to the prosecutor’s office.

The email conversations included graphic sexual discussion. Coleman repeatedly attempted to arrange a meeting, according to the prosecutor’s office. Coleman believed he had successfully arranged the meeting for about 3:15 p.m. on Wednesday at a park in Robbinsville, according to the prosecutor’s office.

When he arrived, he went to a secluded area of the park to engage in sexual conduct. He was then arrested without incident, according to the prosecutor’s office. Coleman is being held in the Mercer County Correction Center in Hopewell pending a detention hearing.

Second-degree crimes carry a sentence of five to 10 years in state prison and a fine of up to $150,000.

Onofri urged anyone with information about suspected improper contact by unknown persons communicating with children via the internet or possible exploitation or sexual abuse of children to please contact his Internet Crimes Against Children (ICAC) Unit at 609-989-6568 or the New Jersey Internet Crimes Against Children Task Force tipline at 888-648-6007.

The attached image of Joseph Coleman was provided by the Mercer County Prosecutor’s Office