Man convicted of child sexually abusive activity after being caught in undercover operation in Chippewa Co.

CHIPPEWA COUNTY — A 49-year-old man has been convicted of Child Sexually Abusive Activity after a jury heard testimony from several police officers, a forensic computer expert and the defendant himself.

According to the Chippewa County Prosecution Attorney, this case arose because of an undercover operation between the Genessee Human Oppression Strike Team (GHOST), the Chippewa County Sheriff’s Office, the Sault Ste. Marie Police Department, and Sault Tribe Police Department, and TRIDENT. The undercover operation included undercover officers posing as a 15-year-old boy on Grindr and arrested multiple individuals, including Aaron Nowicki, 49, when they arrived at a specified location for sex, officials said.

When Nowicki took the stand during the trial, he testified that he had been using Grindr over the past 11 years and has had sexual relations with several people whose profiles said that they were 18 years old. He also admitted that he never asked any of them their actual age, and instead relied solely on the age stated b y their profile, even when he knew that people under 18 were also using the site.

Due to this testimony, the jury determined that Nowicki failed to take reasonable precautions to determine whether the person he was meeting for sexual intercourse was 18 years old or older.

A date for Nowicki’s sentencing has not be set yet.