NEED TO KNOW
- Morgan Stapp, 32, is facing a child sex trafficking charge after she allegedly told a man he could molest her infant daughter for $400
- The mother of seven denied sending the message, but a search of her phone and social media accounts by local police allegedly found that the message was sent from her phone and at her home
- She is now being held on $100,000 bail and faces a fixed sentence of 10 to 30 years in prison if convicted of the level 2 felony
An Indiana woman is facing a child sex trafficking charge after police allege she told a man he could molest her infant daughter in exchange for money.
Morgan Stapp, 32, is accused of using SnapChat to try and facilitate a sexual assault between a man and her seven-month-old daughter.
A copy of the probable cause affidavit filed in the case and obtained by PEOPLE said that the mother of seven allegedly sent a message to that man on Nov. 1, 2024 that indicated the man could assault the child in exchange for $400. “Half now rest after I’ll send my address I do live alone, and her dad is not in the picture,” the alleged message read.
Snapchat flagged the message to authorities and 10 days later FBI agents met with Stapp at her home in Indianapolis, according to the affidavit.
Stapp allegedly told the agents that she did not have access to her Snapchat account and could not have sent the message in question.
Stapp initially told FBI agents she had recently purchased a new phone, but later allegedly admitted to a caseworker from the Indiana Department of Child Services that this wasn’t true.
The affidavit said that this admission got back to FBI agents, while at the same time Det. Kristen Hartman of the Metropolitan Police Department of Indianapolis was able to obtain a search warrant for Stapp’s Snapchat account. That search allegedly showed that only one phone had accessed the account, according to the affdiavit.
Hartman also found over 7,000 messages had been sent between Oct. 29 and Nov. 1, said the affidavit, including 81 that said: “Would you be interested in buying my nudes so I can get baby diapers.”
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The search also found multiple images of Stapp that had been taken after she told FBI agents she had lost access to her account, according to the affidavit,
A warrant was then obtained for Stapp’s cell phone, said the affidavit, and a search of the device determined that the IP address registered to the mother’s home was the same as the one accessing the social media account.
The court docket shows that Stapp was booked into custody on July 8 and is being charged with child sex trafficking (attempt to commit), a level 2 felony.
Individuals convicted of a level 2 felony in Indiana are required by law to serve a fixed sentence ranging from 10 to 30 years in prison.
Stapp’s initial bond of $200,000 was lowered to $100,000 by the presiding judge in court last week but Stapp remains in jail.
There have been five no contact orders and two orders of protection filed in the case, though the docket does not reveal who requested those orders.
Stapp has been appointed a public defender after successfully filing for indigent status, but her new attorney did not respond to a request for comment.
She is due back in court on Sept. 15.
If you suspect child abuse, call the Childhelp National Child Abuse Hotline at 1-800-4-A-Child or 1-800-422-4453, or go to www.childhelp.org. All calls are toll-free and confidential. The hotline is available 24/7 in more than 170 languages.
If you or someone you know has been a victim of sexual abuse, text “STRENGTH” to the Crisis Text Line at 741-741 to be connected to a certified crisis counselor.
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