A man is being held without bail at the Westmoreland County Prison after agents from the state Attorney General’s office said he set up a meeting to pay for sex with a 12-year-old girl through online communication with a person who he believed was the girl’s mother.
Anthony R. Laughard, 41, of East Wheatfield, Indiana County, was arrested Friday when he arrived in North Huntingdon for the purported meeting, according to court papers.
An agent reported communicating with Laughard as both the parent and girl starting in February. That communication continued until recently when authorities said Laughard arranged for a $350 payment for sex with the girl and four pain pills during a meeting in the township.
After being arrested, Laughard admitted to being the person behind the communication, according to court papers. Investigators said they seized $350 and a pack of cigarettes he was supposed to give to the child’s mother.
He is charged with unlawful contact, attempted rape, criminal use of a communication facility and related offenses. Laughard was denied bail because of community safety reasons, according to online court records. He did not have an attorney listed in online court records. A preliminary hearing is set for June 21.
