• [Daily Mirror Icon]
• News
• US News
• Crime

Police officer who helped organise security for Donald Trump caught trying to meet '15-year-old boy' for sex

A top policeman who helped organise security for US presidential escorts and arranged motorcades for visiting foreign leaders in Washington DC pleaded guilty to two counts of solicitation of a minor

[Lieutenant Matthew Mahl ]

View 3 Images

Lieutenant Matthew Mahl was involved in high-level policing operations in Washington DC before his arrest(Image: Fox News)

A top police officer who helped organise security for Donald Trump has admitted attempting to meet who he believed to be a 15-year-old boy for sex.

Lieutenant Matthew Mahl, from the Washington DC Metropolitan Police Department, was caught in an on-camera police sting operation by another police force in Harford County, Maryland in April. He had turned up at the home after sending sexually explicit messages to an officer posing as a teenager online.

But when he got there, he was greeted by armed officers and Chris Hansen, the former presenter of hit US TV show To Catch A Predator.

[He was caught in a sting operation by another police force]

View 3 Images

He was caught in a sting operation by another police force(Image: Fox News)

Lieutenant Mahl, 47, who was tasked with helping organise security for presidential escorts and high-level motorcades for foreign heads of state, refused to answer any questions on camera during the sting. Sat on a chair in handcuffs, he repeatedly said: "I'm not answering any questions until I speak to an attorney".

Mahl pleaded guilty to two counts of solicitation of a minor last week. The police lieutenant spent over a month texting the decoy under the impression he was speaking to a 15-year-old boy.

He gave his real name while exchanging sexually explicit messages, including pictures of his genitals, according to court documents reported by US media. Mahl revealed to the decoy that he was a lieutenant involved in escorting the president, and some of the photographs allegedly showed him wearing a police uniform.

[Mahl had turned up at the home expecting to meet a 15-year-old boy]

View 3 Images

Mahl had turned up at the home expecting to meet a 15-year-old boy(Image: Fox News)

Chris Hansen read out parts of the chat log during the video sting, which included Mahl offering to take the boy out for 'cheese steaks', offering him a trip to Italy, and telling him he would 'meet the monster at the end of the happy trail'.

Prosecutors said Mahl discussed the 15-year-olds age during the conversation, and spoke of the risk of being caught. Mahl arranged to meet the teen at his home after school, finding police officers from Harford County Sheriffs Office, the TV host and a camera crew upon his arrival on April 14.

He was arrested at the scene, and suspended by Washington DC Metropolitan Police the same day. A video of the sting released in May has since had more than 1.4million views on social media.

Following his guilty plea, Judge Elizabeth Bowen at Harford County Circuit Court ordered Mahl undergo a psychiatric evaluation before his sentencing on September 30.

[Daily Mirror Icon]

ENJOYED THIS STORY?

Choose Daily Mirror as a 'Preferred Source' on Google News for quick access to the news you value.