Ex-Minnesota Cop Pleads Guilty to Sex Charges

ANOKA, Minn. (AP) - A former Minneapolis police officer accused of using social media to try to lure girls into sexual encounters has pleaded guilty.

Bradley Schnickel pleaded guilty Monday in Anoka County to five counts of criminal sexual conduct, criminal sexual contact or solicitation of minors.

Schnickel had been scheduled to go on trial starting Monday. Reports say he could face nearly 12 years in prison under the plea agreement.

Last summer, Schnickel was sentenced to one year in the Hennepin County workhouse and six years probation after pleading guilty to sending nude photographs of himself to two teenage girls in that county.

Schnickel was fired from the Minneapolis police force last February.