By Tracie Sullivan
A 5th District judge handed down a prison sentence last week after a Saratoga Springs man chatted online with a female he believed attended Canyon View High School.
Stephen Jay Cooper, 54, received a sentence of zero to five years from Judge Matthew Bell involving charges of attempted sexual exploitation of a minor and dealing harmful materials to a minor, both classified as third-degree felonies. During the sentencing, Bell called Cooper’s acts “especially troubling.”
Originally, Cooper was also charged with enticing a minor, a class A misdemeanor. However, the charge was later dismissed as part of a plea agreement.
Cooper’s case resulted from an online operation involving the Internet Crimes Against Children task force (ICAC), a multi-jurisdictional task force that investigates and prosecutes individuals who use the internet to exploit children.
According to the charging documents, Cooper engaged in sexually explicit conversations with a girl by the username “jamiecvh,” an undercover officer with ICAC.
Their communications later moved to text messages where Cooper shared sexually explicit photos and videos. He requested the same type of images from the user that he believed was a 16-year-old female.
During their conversations, Cooper also asked “jamiecvh” to meet up with him in Salt Lake City, just 25 minutes from where he claimed he lived.
“Finally, Cooper sent messages in order to convince jamiecvh to meet up with him for the purpose of engaging in sexual activity,” the affidavit states.
Cooper also referred to himself as “daddy” several times throughout his messages.
Cooper’s conviction and sentence comes in a line of several recent stings involving ICAC.
Iron County Attorney Chad Dotson said he is committed to prosecuting these types of cases and is grateful to the police for their efforts.
“Our local law enforcement has worked tirelessly to detect and apprehend individuals who prey on children online,” Dotson said. “And we in the Iron County Attorney’s Office will continue to argue and advocate for tough sentences in these disturbing cases.”