By Jon King / jking@whmi.com


A plea has been entered by a Fenton Township man charged nearly two years ago in a child sex sting operation.

27-year-old Kurtis Statler was charged in June of 2019 with one count of child sexually abusive activity, using a computer/internet to commit a crime, and accosting a child for immoral purposes. On Thursday, he entered a guilty plea in Genesee County Circuit Court to an amended count of using a computer to commit a crime in exchange for the other two charges being dropped.

Statler was among 22 people arrested in an operation run by the Genesee Human Oppression Strike Team, or GHOST. Authorities said Statler and the other suspects' targeted children for sexual purposes in Genesee County.

Under the plea deal, Statler will be offered no up-front jail time and be sentenced to 24 months of probation. If he successfully completes six months of probation, the charge will be further reduced. Sentencing was set for May 24th.