A Carbon County man, who admitted sending over 70 text message of a sexual nature to a young girl in Ohio, was sentenced to a state prison term on Tuesday afternoon in the county court.

Richard Todd Shuleski, 52, of Lehighton, who previously pleaded guilty to one count of corruption of a minor, rated a felony 3, was sentenced by Judge Steven R. Serfass to served 16 to 48 months in a state correctional institution. He has been in prison since his arrest and was given credit for 498 days already spent in jail. The sentence is at the highest end of the standard range of sentencing guidelines, which called for a minimum sentence of between 9 and 16 months.In a plea bargain with the district attorney's office, charges of disseminating photo, filming of child sex acts, child pornography, unlawful contact with a child and other charges were dropped.Shuleski was charged by the state police computer crime unit with sending 76 text messages to the teen over a period of time in December 2014. The messages, troopers said, contained numerous sexual references.The family of the teen contacted local police, who then notified Pennsylvania State Police. The crimes unit was able to trace the text messages to Lehighton and Shuleski, although he had used another name on his cellphone account.On Friday, Serfass conducted a hearing on a report by the state sexual offenders assessment board, which determined he was a violent sexual predator. Serfass ruled yesterday that based on the testimony at the hearing, Shuleski is a violent sexual predator and must register for life as a sexual offender.Defense attorney Matthew J. Mottola, of the public defender's office, said his client had a crime-free life until his mid-30s when he and his wife divorced. He also said an evaluation by a psychiatrist determined that Shuleski has mental health issues. He said his client was asking for a state prison term because there are more programs to help him in the state system.When asked by Serfass if he had anything to say, the defendant declined. However, after the sentence was imposed he asked Serfass the length of the sentence again. When told the term is for four years, Shuleski said, "I have to pay for what I did."Serfass also noted that Shuleski has a prior conviction of a sexual nature.Serfass said there is a feeling that this type of crime is victimless; he said it is not. He said although there was no physical contact with the victim, it still had a traumatic effect on her. He added that a message had to be sent to protect the public and victims of such crimes.Assistant District Attorney Joseph D. Perilli said the victim and her parents agreed to the plea agreement.Serfass also ordered Shuleski to supply a DNA sample, have no access to any type of computers, no contact with the victim, undergo monthly sexual offenders counseling and pay court costs of about $1,000.