A Georgia man working a construction job in Oklahoma City is accused of driving to Wagoner County at night to meet someone he believed was a 14-year-old girl, only to find deputies waiting instead. Gregory Smith of Warner Robins, Georgia, was arrested during a September operation and now faces felony complaints of facilitating sexual conduct with a minor and making lewd or indecent proposals to a child.
According to KOKH, Wagoner County investigators ran a multi-day operation targeting suspected online child sexual abuse and exploitation when they say a male suspect reached out to a decoy posing as a 14-year-old girl. A confidential informant told authorities the suspect contacted the decoy through Snapchat and Kik, and investigators say the conversation turned sexual after the two had spoken only briefly. Per the station's reporting, the suspect then agreed to meet the decoy in person.
Smith allegedly drove from his construction job in Oklahoma City to reach the meeting location, and investigators say he wanted to meet the decoy at night in a neighborhood specifically to avoid being seen. Deputies arrested him before any in-person contact with a real child could occur. Wagoner County Sheriff Chris Elliott said investigators worked quickly and carefully to identify the suspect and take him into custody before further contact could happen.
Sheriff Points to Pattern of Online Predator Stings
Elliott said the operation showed the department's commitment to protecting children and holding exploiters accountable, adding that his office will continue working with confidential informants and law enforcement partners to pursue people who target children online. Smith had bond set at $100,000, per the same account from KOKH.
The case fits a pattern local investigators have repeated throughout 2026. In July, KRMG reported that a Missouri man had been arrested in a child-exploitation investigation. As reported by The Daily News Now, the sheriff's office conducts these operations in partnership with Safe from Online Sex Abuse, a nonprofit that supplies trained undercover decoys for exactly this kind of investigation.
Charges Carry Decades-Long Prison Exposure
Both charges against Smith carry severe statutory penalties. Under Oklahoma law, making a lewd or indecent proposal to a minor under 16 is a felony punishable by 3 to 20 years in prison, or a minimum of 25 years if the victim is under 12, according to the Law Firm of Oklahoma. Soliciting or facilitating sexual conduct with a minor through technology is a separate felony carrying up to 10 years in state prison and registration for 25 years after completion of the sentence; the lewd-proposal offense carries Level 3 registration for life.
In decoy cases, a legal-impossibility defense is unavailable under these statutes because they cover solicitation of a person the defendant believes to be a minor, even when the person is an adult decoy.
Part of a Statewide Enforcement Surge
Other recent Wagoner County cases have involved alleged online exploitation. Hoodline reported on a separate Wagoner County case involving explicit material sent to fake teen decoys. Hoodline also covered a Broken Arrow pair accused of explicit chats with a fake 14-year-old who were held on $100,000 bond.
The county-level activity mirrors a larger statewide push. Federal prosecutors in northeastern Oklahoma announced charges against 38 individuals and the rescue of 21 minor children from dangerous conditions in August as part of a multi-agency initiative called Operation Clean Sweep III. Figures attributed to the U.S. Department of Justice show the National Center for Missing and Exploited Children forwarded 8,621 CyberTips to the Oklahoma State Bureau of Investigation's Internet Crimes Against Children unit between January and August of this year alone.
Smith was arrested and faces complaints that remain allegations and have not been proven in court. Wagoner County investigators have signaled no plans to slow the pace of these stings, with Sheriff Elliott reiterating that confidential informants and law enforcement partners will keep targeting people who attempt to exploit children online.
