Cherokee County man gets 70 years for molesting teenage girl, secretly taking people’s photo

A Cherokee County man will spend at the least the next 50 years in prison after being found guilty of child molestation.

Cherokee County District Attorney Shannon Wallace’s office says Collin Anthony Smerk, 52, was sentenced to 70 years with the first 50 to be served in prison and the remaining 20 on probation.

He was convicted in March of child molestation, enticing a child for indecent purposes, sexual exploitation of children and invasion of privacy.

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Prosecutors say Smerk molested a 15-year-old girl when she was visiting Cherokee County in 2017. She reported the assault in 2020 and told investigators she was worried that Smerk had secretly videotaped her.

While investigating, detectives found videos of people taking showers and using the bathroom in his home on Smerk’s electronic devices. They also found videos of very young children being sexually assaulted by adults.

Detectives also found a hidden camera in Smerk’s basement. The camera was later recovered from Smerk’s car with a missing memory card.

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“His pornography consumption had themes of child sexual abuse and voyeurism that eventually became his playbook. With little regard for who he hurt, Mr. Smerk violated the privacy of visitors in his home and he manipulated and sexually violated a vulnerable child in order to satisfy his own selfish desires,” said Deputy Chief Assistant District Attorney Katie Gropper.

After he serves his prison sentence, Smerk will be banned from Cherokee County.

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