Hillsborough man gets 8 years probation for soliciting teen for sex
TAMPA, Fla. - Zachary Stitz is the latest defendant to cut a deal after being arrested and charged in a child sex sting in Hillsborough County.
Last fall, the Hillsborough County Sheriff's Office arrested 22 men for soliciting sex with minors in a child predator sting called Operation Social Bust.
In Stitz's case, prosecutors dropped one of the charges, so now the 34-year-old is pleading guilty to two third-degree felonies.
Prosecutor Brooke Padgett said on September 21, 2020, a detective with the Hillsborough County Sheriff's Office was working undercover, portraying a 14-year-old male, when the detective made contact with Stitz.
Padgett said Stitz wanted to meet up with a minor to have sex.
"The defendant engaged in conversation, some that was sexual in nature, with whom he believed to be a 14-year-old male," Padgett told the court.
Stitz has agreed to an offer of 8 years probation and prosecutors agreed to withhold adjudication, which means he will not be a convicted felon.
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Yet, during the hearing, Stitz appeared hesitant about it and the judge questioned him.
"You want to go forward or not? Are you happy with your attorney, Mr. Shein?" asked Tampa Judge Lyann Goudie.
"I'm accepting what is understood so the hesitation is not against Mr. Shein," explained Stitz. "It is because as a person judging that and understanding it is a very big weight upon myself."
Judge Goudie understood and the deal went forward.
Stitz pleaded guilty to the use of a computer to solicit illegal acts and unlawful use of a two-way communication device.
As part of his probation, he is banned from having any contact with a minor.