BUFFALO, NY. — A retired Montgomery County Public School teacher could face life in federal prison after allegedly agreeing to meet for sex with someone he thought was an underage girl.
Sometime in April, Richard W. Scherer, 70, unknowingly began talking with a group called Predator Poacher.
They run a YouTube channel and website, where they act as minors and record their interactions with predators who agree to meet with them for sexual encounters.
A member of the group first contacted Scherer on Instagram, acting as a 13-year-old girl.
The two agreed to meet June 28 at a retail store in Buffalo, New York.
When Scherer arrived, the group confronted him outside and interviewed him for nearly an hour, during which he allegedly admitted to being a pedophile.
Around the same time he was busted for trying to meet with the purported 13-year-old, Scherer was also allegedly speaking with what he believed was an 8-year-old about sex.
In conversations, prosecutors say Scherer mentioned being a sexual education teacher in the past.
He resigned from Montgomery County Public Schools and had his teacher's certification revoked in 2011, after potential sexual misconduct allegations emerged involving 4th grade students.
At the time of his arrest, investigators recovered two images of child pornography from Scherer's cell phone.
Anyone with more information on the case should call the FBI at 716-843-1680.
If found guilty, he faces a mandatory minimum of 10 years in prison and a $250,000 fine.
