Indy man convicted of child solicitation in Johnson County

JOHNSON COUNTY, Ind. – An Indianapolis man who was arrested as part of a larger child solicitation sting in Johnson County is now awaiting sentencing after his conviction this week.

Jurors deliberated for less than an hour on Thursday before finding Christopher S. Busch guilty of child solicitation, a Level 4 felony. The verdict brought a conclusion to his two-day trial.

Police arrested Busch in April 2023 as part of a larger crackdown that led to the arrests of more than 30 people. It was a joint undercover operation involving the Johnson County Sheriff’s Office and the Franklin Police Department.

According to investigators, Busch was involved in a text message exchange in which he offered to engage in sex acts with a girl he believed to be under the age of 16. He traveled from Indianapolis to Johnson County to meet the girl—only for police to meet him instead.

“I am pleased that this individual who came down here from Indianapolis to prey on kids in Johnson County will be serving years in prison, perhaps more than a decade, for his crime,” said Johnson County Prosecutor Lance Hamner said. “A pervert in a steel cage poses no threat to our children. That’s our goal.”

“I don’t know how we can say it any clearer: leave the kids alone or you’re going away for a long time,” said Chief Trial Deputy Carrie Miles, who leads the prosecutor office’s Sex Offender and Domestic Battery Division.

The prosecutor’s office thanked the Johnson County Sheriff’s Office and Franklin Police Department for their work on the case.

Busch faces up to 12 years in prison and must register as a sex offender. Sentencing is set for Aug. 22.

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