Deputy: Solicitation suspect said age didn't matter

A Bollinger County sheriff's deputy testified in court Tuesday that a Jackson man arrested in an undercover police sting for soliciting sex with an underage girl had told the minor "age didn't matter."

Following a preliminary hearing before Associate Circuit Judge Gary A. Kamp, Irvin E. Holderbaugh Jr., 40, of 924 E. Independence St., was bound over to circuit court on charges of attempted statutory rape.

During the hearing, Bollinger County deputy Kevin Otte said the defendant solicited a 14-year-old girl, who was actually an undercover officer, over the Internet.

"He would like to have her and age didn't matter," Otte said of the defendant.

The Bollinger County Sheriff's Department set up a profile of a 14-year-old girl on the Web site MySpace.com, with a picture of a 21-year-old Bollinger County sheriff's dispatcher when she was 18 years old posing as the minor.

Holderbaugh began chatting with the girl online and sent her 10 pictures of himself, five of which were pornographic, Otte said.

On March 11, the two arranged to meet at Jackson's City Park to later have sex, according to Otte.

As Holderbaugh began walking toward the dispatcher, police arrested him. During a search, officers found seven condoms, 11 Viagra pills, and a boxcutter knife on his person, Otte said.

Holderbaugh was also charged with attempted enticement of a child. Because that count occurred online, Kamp scheduled a hearing for Monday to discuss whether Cape Gir-ardeau County had jurisdiction.