Man allegedly arranges to meet teen girl in Harvard park, but she turns out to be undercover officer

A Roscoe man thought he was arranging to meet a 16-year-old girl in Harvard for sex but found out he was actually communicating with an undercover detective, prosecutors said Wednesday.

Dan L. Tuma, 64, is charged with soliciting a child for images of child sex abuse, a Class 1 felony, as well as indecent solicitation of a child through the internet, grooming and sexual exploitation of a child, according to a criminal complaint in McHenry County court. Conviction on a Class 1 felony carries a prison sentence of up to 15 years.

Tuma made his first appearance in court Wednesday, where Judge Cynthia Lamb ruled that he was a danger to children on and off the internet and detained him in jail pretrial.

Assistant State’s Attorney Dan Conroy said Tuma used the Kik messaging app and the name “Sam Wainwright” when he asked for sexually explicit photos of someone he thought was a 16-year-old girl. He sent the “girl” an explicit picture of himself, arranged to meet her at a park, asked her to ditch school, asked explicit questions and described sexual acts he would do to her “in graphic detail.” Conroy said.

Conroy said that “almost immediately” after entering the chat room, Tuma began using “highly inappropriate language” that did not sound like “fantasy.” Conroy also said Tuma engaged in this communication on the app both at home and work.

If released pending trial, “he will continue to seek out what he thinks is normal behavior for his sexual gratification,” Conroy said

Assistant Public Defender Gene Wilson said Tuma has no criminal history and scored low on a dangerousness evaluation and that steps could be taken to protect the community. Wilson suggested GPS monitoring and banning Tuma from contact with minor and social media, which can be policed through software placed on electronic devices.

But Lamb agreed with prosecutors and detained Tuma, who is due back in court Aug. 7.