Florissant man charged with attempting to have sex with teen boy

A 21-year-old Florissant, Mo., man has been charged with grooming, sexually exploiting and traveling to meet a 13-year-old boy.

According to court documents, Samuel Barney is accused of using an online service to lure and entice the boy in order to commit aggravated criminal sexual abuse. In addition, the documents allege, he exposed himself “virtually” to the boy either for sexual gratification or sexual arousal.

He then allegedly drove to Illinois to engage in illicit sexual behavior with the same boy.

These incidents allegedly occurred between Jan. 21 and March 4.

He was charged Friday and faces two counts of traveling to meet a minor, Class 3 felonies; sexual exploitation of a child, a Class A misdemeanor; and one count of grooming, a Class 4 felony.

Belleville Police Department is listed as the arresting agency. No court appearances were scheduled for Barney as of Monday evening.

This story was originally published April 10, 2017 at 8:15 PM with the headline "Florissant man charged with attempting to have sex with teen boy."