Hunter
10/02/26
A Cedar Rapids man charged in connection to a child exploitation sting operation has reached a plea deal
KCRG TV reports Cedar Rapids police created a Reddit profile posing as a 13-year-old female named Bella. 23-year-old Gabriel Kelley allegedly contacted the profile. In the conversations, “Bella” indicated that she was 13 years old.
Police say that’s when the discussions became sexual, and Kelley messaged “Bella” that he was on his way to meet up with her. When Kelley got to the home, officers seized his phone and arrested him.
Thursday, Kelley pleaded guilty to enticement of a minor. A charge of grooming was dropped.
The plea deal includes a deferred judgement, supervised probation for three years and fines.
Kelley had no previous sex crimes of felonies on his record.