A professor at Suffolk County Community College tried to lure what he thought was a 13-year-old girl to a park so he could take her virginity, federal prosecutors allege.
Except Philip Schuler, 53, didn’t know he was chatting up an FBI agent, and after he arrived for the rendezvous he found himself facing federal charges, according to court filings.
Schuler, an adjunct assistant history professor at the SUNY college, appeared on the FBI’s radar after an organization called The Decoy Project tipped off authorities in September that the prof was having sexually explicit chats with someone posing as a 13-year-old girl, according to filings.
So the FBI set up its own snare, and in late October, an agent posing as “Chloe,” a 13-year-old girl, started talking to Schuler on Discord, the feds allege. They chatted almost daily, and Schuler talked about taking “Chloe’s” virginity, masturbated during a video call, and sent a penis photo.
On Jan. 6, Schuler and “Chloe” made a plan to meet in person the next day, and when the agent said she couldn’t find any condoms, he responded, “I’ve got that covered,” according to the feds.
The next day, Schuler showed up at Edward W. Cahill Memorial Park in Valley Stream, and the FBI was waiting, the feds said.
He told agents that he was in love with “Chloe” and only wanted to meet her to see if she was real, and denied that he was going to have sexual contact her — but he also admitted that he rented a room at a motel in Merrick earlier in the day, the feds allege. He gave agents the key, and they found spermicide, gifts for “Chloe” and a laptop inside, according to court filings.
The FBI is investigating additional possible crimes he may have committed, including child porn possession and Schuler’s remarks that he had sex with a different minor at least a dozen times before meeting “Chloe” on Discord.
The feds charged Schuler with attempted coercion and enticement, and a Long Island Federal Court judge on Tuesday ordered him held without bail.
Schuler’s attorney did not immediately return a call seeking comment.
In a statement to News12 Long Island Tuesday, the college said, “Upon learning of these allegations, the adjunct part-time instructor was immediately placed on leave and will not be performing any instructional or other duties pending investigation.”
