Prison For Man Who Tried To Meet 'Teen' For Sex In Lower Merion

LOWER MERION TOWNSHIP, PA — A Philadelphia man will spend at least three years in prison and seven years on probation after child sex-related crimes after he tried to meet someone he thought was a teenager for sex in Lower Merion Township.

Court records show Anthony Lewis Smith-Sturgis, 31, of Philadelphia, pleaded guilty to unlawful contact with a minor, sexual offenses, and criminal attempted involuntary deviate sexual intercourse with a person less than 16 years old last week in a Montgomery County court.

Smith-Sturgis was arrested in Lower Merion Township Police on Oct. 5, 2023.

Smith-Sturgis was sending sexually explicit messages to what he believed was a 14-year-old girl, who was actually an undercover officer, on social media.

He told authorities he drove to Lower Merion Township to have a sexual encounter with the "girl."

Court documents show he was sentenced to 3 to 7 years in prison and seven years of probation for the two charges he pleaded guilty to.

Smith-Sturgis was initially charged with unlawful contact with a minor, statutory sexual assault, involuntary deviate sexual intercourse with a minor, corruption of a minor, and criminal use of a communication facility.

The other charges were dismissed.

He must also comply with Megan's Law registration requirements, register as a lifetime sex offender, undergo a psycho-sexual evaluation and comply with recommendations, and not have unsupervised contact with minors, court records show.