A former Philadelphia police officer last week pleaded guilty to charges that he solicited several teen boys for sex.
Adrian Makuch, 49, pleaded guilty March 11 to unlawful contact with a minor for the purpose of prostitution and also to charges of luring a child into a motor vehicle and patronizing prostitutes.
At the hearing, Common Pleas Court Judge Karen Shreeves-Johns revoked Makuch’s $20,000 bail, and he will be held at Curran-Fromhold Correctional Facility until his June 16 sentencing.
Sentencing was deferred pending the results of a mental-health evaluation.
Police arrested Makuch, a 21-year veteran of the force, in December after a several-month sting operation initiated by a 15-year-old boy.
The teen said Makuch approached him in the Lower Northeast in summer 2008 in a Silver Honda, and allegedly tried to coax the teen to get into his car and asked if he could take nude photos of him. The teen contacted police that fall after again seeing Makuch’s car in his neighborhood.
Police conducted surveillance of Makuch and also had a 22-year-old undercover officer pose as a teen, from whom Makuch requested naked pictures. Makuch and the officer traded sexually explicit text messages and phone calls and negotiated a price Makuch would be willing to pay for sex.
Makuch most recently worked for the police department’s Crime Scene Unit and, last fall, received a commendation from the FBI for his involvement in a robbery investigation several years ago.
Shreeves-Johns could sentence Makuch to seven-14 years in prison, although his attorney has said he’s seeking probation and counseling for his client.
Jen Colletta can be reached at [email protected].