About that GEO Reporter...

Nayyar Zaidi, aka Syed Haider Kar Zaidi.

He was the 98th man caught up by the task force and if he's sitting in jail it's because he's telling his family not to post his $200,000 bond on the advice of his lawyer.

Feds eyeing Internet Predator.

Federal charges are likely for a Virginia man who allegedly arranged to have sex with a 13-year-old girl in Jackson Township. Jeffrey Haupt, attorney for Syed Haider Kar Zaidi, 64, said Monday it appears his client’s case will be sent to U.S. District Court in Youngstown. Haupt said Zaidi could appear before a magistrate or judge later this week.“I have been in discussion with local and federal authorities about this case,” he said. Zaidi was arrested Thursday night in a parking lot at 4220 Belden Village St. N.W. following a two month investigation by local police and the FBI’s Internet Crimes Against Children Task Force. Zaidi was the task force’s 98th arrest.

According to jail records, Zaidi developed an online relationship with the girl and planned to meet her for sex in the Belden Village area. An undercover officer assumed the girl’s identity in an Internet chat room. Zaidi reportedly drove to the area from his home in Woodbridge, Va.The case could be moved to federal court for several reasons, Haupt said, including the fact that Zaidi crossed state lines, the nature of the material involved in the case and the age of the purported victim. Local charges filed against Zaidi would be dropped if the case is transferred to the federal level, according to Haupt. “He would remain in the custody of the federal government pending an indictment or the filing of a bill of information,” Haupt said.

Zaidi was arraigned Monday in Massillon Municipal Court on felony charges of attempted unlawful sex with a minor, attempted child endangering, attempted illegal use of a minor in nudity-oriented material or performance and importuning. He remains in the Stark County Jail in lieu of $200,000 bond. Haupt said he has advised family members not to post bond. “I’m very confident if he does (post bond) that he will be taken into federal custody,” Haupt said.

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