Orland Man Wanted In Underage Sex Sting Arrested In Florida

ORLAND PARK, IL — A year-long manhunt for an Orland Park man wanted for child solicitation has ended, with an arrest made in Florida Thursday afternoon.

Connor Smith, 33, of the 8200 block of Hillcrest Drive, has been on the run from authorities since February 2023, when police say he arranged to meet with an undercover officer posing as a 15-year-old girl. Smith was wanted by Lake County Sheriff's officers and accused of sending sexually explicit images and videos of himself to the agent.

Smith fled Lake County Sheriff's officers and then failed to turn himself in, with the latest sightings of him reported in southern Florida.

Smith was arrested March 28 by sheriff's police in Pinellas County, Florida. An inmate log shows Smith as booked into custody Thursday afternoon.

Police say Smith arranged online to meet a young girl for a sexual encounter, unaware that he had been communicating with an undercover agent. On Feb. 9 2023, officials say Smith drove to meet the girl for the arranged sexual encounter, but fled in his vehicle as police closed in. The next day, a nationwide arrest warrant was issued for Smith on charges of traveling to meet a minor, grooming and disseminating harmful material. The investigation was led by the Lake County Sheriff’s Office Criminal Investigations Division, in collaboration with the Naval Criminal Investigative Service.

He was reportedly last seen in southern Florida, where family resides, Fox 32 Chicago reported recently. He is distinctively tall at 6 feet, 8 inches, and was bearded at the time of the initial chase.

In a previous incident, Smith was arrested in December 2021, after police said that he met a 16-year-old girl online and arranged to meet her at an Indiana hotel. Court records alleged that once at the hotel, police said that Smith — who once appeared on an MTV reality show — raped the girl, which led to him being criminally charged.

However, charges were dropped against Smith in September 2022, after officials said the victim who originally met up with Smith stopped cooperating with law enforcement officials. Days later, Smith issued a statement through his attorney saying how dramatically the charges and rape allegations had affected his life.