A 58-year-old convicted sex offender has been charged with a felony after allegedly photographing two boys while he was working at a convenience store in Freeburg, according to police.

Richard P. Sexton of 11 Pine Drive, Crestwood, Mo., was charged Friday with felony child photography by a sex offender, according to Freeburg Police Chief Mel Woodruff. If convicted, Sexton faces three to seven years in prison.

Sexton was arrested Wednesday afternoon at the convenience store where he was employed and where the offense allegedly took place.

The arrest stemmed from a parent's complaint that Sexton had taken photographs and had inappropriate conversations with their child, Woodruff said.

"If he would have been a local sex offender, we would have been able to have information on him," Woodruff said. "With him being in Missouri, he's in their system. If you don't have a reason to check or the employer doesn't run a background check, then there is no way of knowing."

Woodruff declined to name the convenience store where the offenses occurred, but "guaranteed" Sexton would no longer be employed there.

Sexton was convicted of molesting a 16-year-old boy on Oct. 7, 2006, in Missouri, according to a state registry of sex offenders in Missouri. He was released from prison in October 2007.

Sexton remains in custody in the St. Clair County Jail on $100,000 bail, Woodruff said.

Freeburg police are assisting law enforcement in Missouri to determine whether Sexton violated that state's laws related to a requirement for sex offenders to keep updated employment information.

Contact reporter Daniel Kelley at dkelley@bnd.com or 618-239-2501.