The owner of a longtime Des Moines sweets shop has pleaded not guilty to charges accusing him of grooming and sexually exploiting a child he believed he was messaging online. Thomas James Coleman, 60, entered his plea on October 24 to charges of sexual exploitation of a minor, grooming, and enticing a minor, following an investigation that began after a Newton police officer posed as a 15-year-old online.
Coleman, identified in court records as the owner of Beaverdale Confections, pleaded not guilty on October 24, according to WHO 13 News. Court records cited by the station indicate he is set to appear for a pretrial conference on January 4, 2027. The charges stem from an investigation that Newton police say began on August 20, when a department officer posed online as a 15-year-old child and began communicating with Coleman.
How the Sting Unfolded
During those online conversations, police allege Coleman solicited the purported child to engage in sexual acts and asked for nude photographs, according to a statement from the City of Newton. Court records reviewed by WHO 13 News add that he also asked for photos and the minor's address and made sexual comments during the exchanges. Newton police identified the suspect as Coleman, a 60-year-old Des Moines resident, as the investigation progressed.
On September 2, Newton police, with assistance from the Des Moines Police Department, carried out a search and seizure warrant at Coleman's home and took him into custody without incident, the city's announcement states. Officers seized Coleman's phone during that search, and the Des Moines Register reports that investigators also searched Beaverdale Confections at 2641 Beaver Drive. Devices recovered from Coleman's home linked him to the account used in the investigation, according to court records cited by WHO 13 News, and a search warrant reportedly turned up an image of Coleman's face on his device that he had shared with a different user.
Coleman's Admissions and the Kik Account
Coleman admitted to owning the Kik account used in the exchanges and to sending messages to the child alias created by police, according to KCCI. Court filings identified that account by the username “dsmhammer” and the display name “Steve Mcmichael,” the Des Moines Register reported. According to the criminal complaint, Coleman also admitted to sending messages to someone he believed was a teenager and described that type of conversation as “routine” for him — a characterization also reported by the Newton Daily News.
Coleman faces two Class D felonies — grooming and enticement of a minor under 16 for a sexual purpose — along with a Class B felony charge of sexual exploitation of a minor, according to the Newton Police Department's statement. He was released from the Jasper County Jail the day after his arrest after posting a $35,000 cash bond, the Des Moines Register reported.
Beaverdale Confections' Future in Question
Coleman has owned and operated Beaverdale Confections since 2008, according to an Iowa secretary of state business profile cited by the Des Moines Register. An August 28 social-media video about the shop appeared days before his arrest became public. The shop's website also stated it was closed for both online and in-store business through December 30, the Des Moines Register noted.
Coleman is scheduled to appear for a pretrial conference on January 4, 2027. As with any criminal charge, Coleman is presumed innocent unless and until proven guilty.
