DOB: 10/09/1979

Case Number: CF2501615

Hill Sentenced to Prison After Reoffending in Undercover Child Exploitation Operation

ST. AUGUSTINE – During a hearing on Tuesday, St. Johns County defendant Michael Hill was sentenced to 15 years in prison followed by five years of sex offender probation. He was also designated a sexual predator.

The defendant entered no contest pleas in August to Traveling to Meet a Minor, Attempted Lewd or Lascivious Battery Sex Act and Tampering with Physical Evidence.

In September 2025, the St. Johns County Sheriff’s Office conducted an undercover operation, which led to arrests of suspects using the internet to sexually exploit children.

During the operation, an undercover detective portrayed themselves as a 14-year-old girl on a commerce website. The detective received sexually explicit direct messages from Hill in response to the fake ad.

The defendant then drove from Clay County to St. Johns County to meet the child. When Hill realized detectives were there instead, he attempted to break his phone into pieces and set it on fire to destroy digital evidence before he was arrested.

Hill was previously arrested in a similar undercover operation conducted by the Jacksonville Sheriff’s Office. In January 2025, he was convicted of Traveling to Meet a Minor and was sentenced to 18 months in prison. He was also designated a sex offender.

The defendant had been released from prison for about two months before he reoffended in the Seventh Judicial Circuit.

The case was investigated by the St. Johns County Sheriff’s Office. Assistant State Attorney Jennifer Lieb successfully prosecuted the case for the State of Florida. The Honorable Christopher Ferebee heard the case and imposed sentence.