BUCKHANNON – An Upshur County man was arrested Monday after allegedly using a computer to solicit a minor over the course of several months.

Amos L. Spears, 30, of Buckhannon, was arrested for soliciting a minor via computer and third-degree sexual assault, both felonies. According to the criminal complaint in the Upshur County Magistrate Clerk’s Office filed by investigating officer Cpl. Brandon Smith with the West Virginia State Police Crimes Again Children unit, the alleged incidents occurred over a five-month period between Nov. 1, 2020 and March 31, 2021.

According to the file, during that time frame, Spears, a 30-year-old adult male, allegedly engaged in a sexual relationship with a 15-year-old female, the juvenile victim. Spears allegedly used a messaging platform via a mobile cellular phone to communicate with the victim and “entice and solicit sexual acts,” the file says.

Spears is being held in the Tygart Valley Regional Jail on a $75,000 cash-only bond, set by Upshur County Magistrate Alan Suder.

The potential penalty for soliciting a minor via computer is a fine of not more than $25,000 or confinement in the state penitentiary for a determinate sentence of not less than five years nor more than 30 years or both. The potential penalty for sexual assault in the third degree is confinement in the penitentiary for not less than one year nor more than five years or a fine of not more than $10,000 or both.