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SALT LAKE CITY (AP) -- A Utah man faces federal charges for allegedly soliciting an Illinois teen over the Internet-- and offering the 13-year-old girl a modeling contract in exchange for sex.
40-year-old Gerald Wheeler appeared in U.S. District Court today on a count of production of child pornography.
He's accused of enticing the girl to take sexually explicit photographs of herself and others.
The charge carries a mandatory penalty of 15 years in federal prison, but Wheeler could face a stiffer penalty because of a prior sex offense.
It was in 1994 that Wheeler was convicted on state charges of third-degree felony attempted forcible sexual assault, court records show. He was sentenced to three years probation, but spent no time in prison.
(Copyright 2006 by The Associated Press. All Rights Reserved.)
