GRAND RAPIDS, Mich. — He persuaded a teenaged girl from Florida to send sexually explicit photos, and now, a former Grand Rapids Public Schools teacher is facing at least a decade in prison for the federal crime.
Philip G. Paauwe on Tuesday pleaded guilty to coercion and enticement of a minor. The offense is punishable by a minimum of 10 years in prison - and up to life.
It is the second setback for the 33-year-old Grandville man in as many days. On Monday, Paauwe was fired from his teaching job.
Paauwe came on police radar last fall after disclosing in an online chatroom “he was interested in participating in sexual contact with a 13-year-old girl,’’ court records show.
He was arrested in early January and charged with two state felonies linked to child pornography on his iPhone. An investigation into those images led to more serious federal charges.
That after investigators determined Paauwe had been in online contact with a girl in Florida, starting in September of 2017 when the girl was 15 years old. Paauwe “persuaded the girl to produce and send him sexually explicit photographs, which constitute child pornography,’’ federal court records show.
The federal case against Paauwe was unsealed on Feb. 28. He was indicted on five charges. Under a plea agreement, federal prosecutors agreed to dismiss four of the charges in exchange for Paauwe’s guilty plea to coercion and enticement of a minor.
Paauwe, who is free on bond, returns to federal court for sentencing in mid-September.
At the time of his arrest, Paauwe was working as a special education teacher at Kent Education Center – Oakleigh, which accommodates students with emotional impairments. He had been with the district less than a year.
Paauwe was placed on unpaid administrative leave after his arrest. The Grand Rapids Public Schools Board of Education on Monday voted unanimously to fire him.
Police first encountered Paauwe last fall in an Internet chatroom. An unknown subject, later identified as Paauwe, “disclosed he was interested in participating in sexual contact with a 13-year-old girl.’’ He described in graphic detail how he wanted to interact sexually with the girl, court records show.
“I want to stay safe. With my job I have a lot of risk discussing the things that we are discussing,’’ Paauwe wrote, according to a search warrant affidavit filed earlier this year in 63rd District Court.
Investigators on Jan. 4 made contact with Paauwe at his home on Wilfred Avenue SW. He admitted to engaging in chats that showed a sexual interest with a 13-year-old and “also indicated he has a sexual attraction to ‘mid-teenage’ girls,’’ court records show.
“Paauwe stated this age included 14 and 15-year-old girls. Paauwe also explained he had downloaded pornography in the past,’’ a detective wrote in the search warrant affidavit.
A search of Paauwe’s phone turned up multiple images of child pornography, including an unclothed 11-year-old girl posing against a wall and an unclothed girl, 12 to 13-years old, posed in a sexually suggestive manner.
A video also depicted Paauwe “touching his exposed penis in his car in a school parking lot,’’ according to the search warrant affidavit.
The probe into Paauwe’s online activity was conducted by the West Michigan Based Child Exploitation Task Force, or WEBCHEX.
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