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February 6, 2013

Man hit with soliciting charge

By Jessica Bruha The Norman Transcript

NORMAN — A Cleveland County man was charged Monday for attempting to solicit a minor for indecent exposure or obscene material, District Court records show.

Steven M. Cunnyngham, 59, of Moore, was charged for soliciting a person whom he believed to be a 15-year-old male for the purpose of engaging in lewd acts with the teen.

According to an affidavit filed with the charge, Cunnyngham had posted an ad on the website Craigslist soliciting sexual favors. A police officer from the Moore Police Department responded to it with a fictitious identity, 15-year-old Joey Smith, according to the affidavit. The officer made it clear that he was only 15 years old and Cunnyngham acknowledged it.

Cunnyngham then requested to meet “Joey” on Friday between 2:45 and 3 p.m. and pick him up at the Moore Public Library so he could perform lewd acts on the teen, according to the charge. Cunnyngham also told “Joey” the color, model and make of the car he would be driving.

At 2:50 p.m. Friday, Cunnyngham showed up in the car, exited his vehicle and began walking around the library.

The police officer saw this, approached the man in his car and identified himself as a police officer and informed him that he was the person he had been communicating with regarding the Craigslist ad, the affidavit stated.

The man was booked into Cleveland County jail on Friday and bonded out Saturday on a $20,000 bond. A preliminary hearing for Cunnyngham will be 1 p.m. Tuesday at the Cleveland County Courthouse.

Jessica Bruha

366-3540

jbruha@normantranscript.com

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