An East Palestine man currently in prison after being caught in an undercover sex sting has been secretly indicted for alleged sex crimes against children dating back to the late 1990s.

According to the indictment, between October of 1996 and December of 1998, James Browne of East Palestine had inappropriate sexual contact with a victim from age four to age six. 

Browne was between the ages of 37 and 39 years old when these alleged crimes took place.

The indictment lists his charges as one count of Rape and one count of Gross Sexual Imposition.

In June of 2022, Browne was sentenced to three years in prison after being caught in an undercover sex sting in which an officer was posing as a 12-year-old girl. 

During these interactions, Browne had sent obscene photographs and is now registered as a Tier I sex offender.

Browne was arraigned on these charges on January 5 and is scheduled for a pretrial hearing on January 17 in the Columbiana County Court of Common Pleas.

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