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LISBON -- An Illinois man charged for allegedly possessing images of child pornography after being caught in a sex-for-hire sting in 2024 entered a guilty plea Wednesday.
Vincent John Bianconi, 36, last known address Chicago Heights, Ill., appeared in Columbiana County Common Pleas Court before Judge Scott Washam and was supposed to be facing a trial, but instead opted for a plea. He was accompanied by his attorney, Lawrence Stacey II.
According to county Assistant Prosecutor Christopher Weeda, Bianconi pleaded guilty to three counts of pandering obscenity involving a minor or impaired person, a fourth-degree felony, and a misdemeanor of engaging in prostitution. A charge of possessing criminal tools will be dismissed.
Sentencing is set for 1 p.m. Oct. 16. Weeda said no recommendation was made regarding the sentence, with that to be determined at the sentencing hearing.
Bianconi was accused of allegedly responding to an undercover ad placed by an agent on a known prostitution website and requesting a woman meet him in his semi truck for sex acts in exchange for $30, arriving at the meeting location in East Palestine on July 4, 2024 in his semi truck wearing only a robe, according to an affidavit. In his possession was $50 and the cell phone used to make the arrangements, which was seized.
An agent with the Mahoning Valley Human Trafficking Task Force recovered images from the phone of minor children engaged in sexual acts.