LOGAN — A 32-year-old Logan man has admitted to sexting with an undercover officer, posing as a teenage girl. James Christoff Vaterlaus accepted a plea deal and will now wait to be sentenced.
According to court records, Vaterlaus appeared June 12 in Logan’s 1st District Court. He pleaded guilty to enticing a minor, a second-degree felony. As part of the plea agreement, prosecutors dismissed three remaining charges.
According to prosecutors, Vaterlaus began messaging an officer at the Logan City Police Department on June 28, 2023. The undercover officer was using an online mobile chat app, identifying themselves as a 13-year-old girl.
As the chats continued, Vaterlaus arranged to meet the officer for sex. He also described various illegal acts he wanted to engage in with the officer.
Police report, Vaterlaus did not appear for the first arranged meeting but continued to message the officer. He also created several other user accounts to continue messaging and requesting to meet. Later, he failed to appear for a second planned meeting.
Police tracked Vaterlaus to his place of employment and arrested him. As officers explained they were taking him into custody, Vaterlaus spontaneously said he never met up with any girl. He was also seen by officers, deleting the chat app off his phone before being placed into handcuffs.
During questioning, Vaterlaus admitted to deleting the app and chatting with the undercover officer. He also consented to allow police to search his phone, where they verified that the app had been deleted.
Vaterlaus was booked into the Cache County Jail and later released after posting a $10,000 bond. He is scheduled to be sentenced August 14 and could face up to 15 years in prison.