A criminal complaint formally filed Monday in Milwaukee revealed more details of the relationship between UW-Madison Professor Lewis Keith Cohen and a 14-year-old boy he allegedly met on the Internet. Police arrested Cohen in a Subway restaurant in Greendale, Wis., March 15 after he allegedly arranged to meet the boy. According to the complaint, Cohen said he was going to take the boy to a park where the two could \talk about sex"" and ""satisfy curiosity."" However, the complaint stated Cohen said he was not planning on actually having sex with the boy.
The boy's mother allegedly alerted police to Cohen's relationship with boy March 3, after she reportedly found e-mails containing sexually explicit photographs sent by Cohen. As described in the complaint, Milwaukee Police Detective Sean Lips then assumed the role of the boy and continued dialogue with Cohen in order to apprehend him. Much of the conversation occurred over instant messenger according to the report. While Cohen was allegedly using one of his screen names, he told the boy they could engage in masturbation but not sex, since the boy was underage.
The criminal complaint follows a March 29 hearing where Cohen was charged with one count of using a computer to facilitate a child sex crime. He received a second charge of child enticement with intent to expose a sex organ. Both charges are felonies.
