Philadelphia Daily News
PHILADELPHIA — A former Philadelphia police officer and military veteran arrested in December for trying to solicit teenage boys for sex has pleaded guilty without going to trial.
Adrian Makuch, 49, during a routine pre-trail conference in Common Pleas Court on Thursday, pleaded guilty to a felony count of unlawful contact with a minor for the purpose of prostitution and to misdemeanor counts of luring a child into a motor vehicle and of patronizing prostitutes.
The 21-year police veteran could face from seven to 14 years in prison when Judge Karen Shreeves-Johns sentences him June 16.
She revoked his $20,000 bail, which will keep him in jail until he is sentenced.
Makuch, of Northeast Philadelphia, had spent the last nine years as a member of the Crime Scene Unit. He was arrested Dec. 8 and informed that he would be fired in 30 days after a yearlong Internal Affairs investigation that began after a 15-year-old boy from the Lower Northeast told police that Makuch had sought to take nude photos of him.
During the investigation, which generated physical and electronic surveillance of the officer, a 22-year-old undercover cop posed as a 17-year-old.
Before long, Makuch approached him and said he wanted to take nude photos of him. Over the phone and in text messages, the two discussed sex acts and the price Makuch was willing to pay for them, according to police.
Yesterday, Makuch’s attorney, Gerald Stanshine, declined to say why Makuch had pleaded guilty. He said he hopes to keep his client out of prison, just the same.
“Consistent with the reports of the medical and psychiatric experts in this case, I will be requesting a period of intense probation coupled with intense counseling, as recommended,” he said.
Makuch, who is single and has no children, had built a good reputation during his distinguished career, Stanshine said.
In October, he was one of seven city officers honored by the FBI for helping investigate an armed robbery of the Henry Avenue Pharmacy on Jan. 13, 2007, during which the pharmacist was shot.
“This guy has served his country in the military - in the Air Force,” Stanshine said. “During 21 years in the Police Department, he’s won countless awards and accommodations and was given credit for breaking difficult cases.
“He’s very upset about what happened. That’s why he had sought counseling on his own without it being suggested or imposed by a court.”
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