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Wheaton man charged with indecent solicitation of a child

A Wheaton man is being held in DuPage County jail on $200,000 bond after he was charged with attempting to arrange a meeting for sexual purposes with an underage girl he befriended on the Internet.

Matthew Knitter, 20, of the 300 block of President Street, appeared in bond court Thursday morning before Judge Richard Russo.

Authorities say the 14-year-old victim accepted a Facebook friend request from Knitter on Tuesday and Knitter then sent sexually explicit messages to the girl and asked her to meet him in person for sex. The girl immediately told her father, who then called Wheaton police.

Police assumed control of the girl's Facebook account, authorities said, and arranged a meeting with Knitter later that same day. Knitter was arrested around 6:30 p.m. when police said he went to meet who he thought was the girl.

"Parents should keep in mind that in today's high-tech world, child sexual predators can get into your home and gain access to your children via the Internet and other types of electronic communication," DuPage County State's Attorney Bob Berlin said in a news release. "That is why it is so important that parents teach their children to be careful and alert to suspicious behavior when communicating over the Internet and through texts or emails with people they have not met in person."

Knitter was charged with indecent solicitation of a child, solicitation to meet a child and grooming. Grooming, in this context, is the act of purposefully becoming emotionally connected to a minor with the aim of eventually exploiting that relationship for sexual or other means

Knitter's next court appearance is scheduled for Aug. 10 in front of Judge Daniel Guerin.

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