Westminster man charged with soliciting minor for sex via Craigslist

A Carroll County Sheriff’s Office deputy, presenting as a 14-year-old girl online, nabbed a Westminster man who allegedly sought a minor for sex on Craigslist, police say.

Lester E. Testerman, 60, of the 400 block of Poole Road, was charged with sexual solicitation of a minor and arrested Friday, according to online court records. He was released on $7,500 bail that day, online court records show.

According to charging documents, a deputy of the Carroll County Sheriff’s Office reviewed Craigslist advertisements in the area with the search term “young” and found an ad seeking a young girl to live rent-free with a middle-aged man. The deputy responded to the ad pretending to be a 14-year-old girl and began texting with Testerman Dec. 17, charging documents state.

During their correspondence, Testerman sent sexually explicit messages and requested photos, according to charging documents. Police ran Testerman’s phone number through a police database to get his full name and birthday, then found a photo of him and his address through the Motor Vehicle Administration (MVA), charging documents read. Police compared the MVA photo to one Testerman sent to the undercover deputy. Testerman also told the undercover deputy what type of vehicle he drove, which matched the vehicle listed to Testerman at the MVA.

Police served a search warrant at Testerman’s address and arrested him without incident Dec. 20, charging documents state. Testerman allegedly admitted to chatting with who he believed to be a 14-year-old girl, exchanging sexually explicit messages and soliciting sex from her, charging documents read.

A phone call to the number listed for Testerman in court records was not immediately returned. No attorney was listed for Testerman in online court records. A preliminary hearing is scheduled for Jan. 17.