A California man known as a “repeat sex offender” tried setting up a Halloween “sex party” involving drug use to sexually abuse a child, federal prosecutors said.

Then came a standoff with a SWAT team, according to the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Southern District of Florida.

Now, a South Florida jury has convicted Michael Gordon Douglas, 48, of Escondido, in San Diego County, of seven counts of distribution of child sexual abuse material and one count of attempted enticement of a minor to engage in sexual activity, the office said in a Friday news release.

During the five-day trial, prosecutors told the jury at the West Palm Beach federal courthouse that the charges against Douglas stem from when South Florida law enforcement became aware of his online activities in a “chat room focused on incest and other sexual taboo.”

Federal public defenders appointed to represent Douglas didn’t immediately return McClatchy News’ request for comment Monday.

In October 2023, Douglas began messaging who he “believed was the mother of an eight-year-old girl,” according to prosecutors.

Unaware that he was actually communicating with an undercover agent on the online platform Kik, Douglas expressed interest in sexually abusing the child he believed was real, court documents say.

He told the undercover agent that he’s repeatedly sexually abused his own daughter, according to charging documents written by a special agent with Homeland Security Investigations.

When the undercover agent, posing as the decoy mother, mentioned they lived in Florida, Douglas said he “has family in Tampa and Ocala, and that he ‘spent some time in Miami and Coral Gables,’” the Homeland Security agent wrote.

Douglas then mentioned having attended the University of Miami, according to court documents.

“During months of chats, Douglas bragged about his sexual experiences with children and posted dozens of sexually explicit photos and videos,” prosecutors said.

Douglas also shared content of child sexual abuse in group chats, according to court filings.

In one of these group chats that he created and added the undercover agent to, Douglas advertised “a sex party that would include minors” and asked if anyone was interested in participating, court documents say.

There were several Kik users in the group chat, according to court documents.

According to prosecutors, while Douglas communicated with the agent, believing they were the mother of the fake 8-year-old, Douglas “repeatedly instructed” how “to gradually sexualize (the) child so that she would be ready, willing, and able to have sex with him.”

“He offered to take the child’s virginity ‘in front of a meth-fueled orgy,’” referring to the Halloween sex party he was trying to coordinate, prosecutors said.

The day Douglas had planned to meet the child, he was driving with a woman as a passenger, according to prosecutors.

When he noticed law enforcement nearby, he “erratically drove away,” leading federal agents to pursue and stop his car, prosecutors said.

The woman got out of the car and screamed, according to prosecutors, that Douglas had “a grenade” and that “he’s going to kill us!”

Douglas took a pin out of what prosecutors said was a replica grenade, causing a standoff with the SWAT team before he surrendered and was taken into custody.

In his car, he was found to have “sex toys, personal lubricant, extra-small lingerie, a small speculum, and a unicorn stuffed animal,” prosecutors said.

It’s unclear where the encounter with the SWAT team occurred. McClatchy News contacted the U.S. Attorney’s Office for more information.

Douglas was previously convicted of possession and distribution of child pornography and attempting to send child pornography to a minor in 2011 in San Diego County, according to a report from The Coast News Group.

He was implicated in the case because, according to court documents, he was messaging a detective posing as a teenage girl.

In that case, Douglas was sentenced to five years of probation and had his 2-year prison sentence stayed, court documents say. He was ordered to register in California as a sex offender.

In June 2021, a judge later ordered him to be removed from the state sex offender registry, believing he was “properly rehabilitated,” court documents say.

While messaging the undercover agent, Douglas said he worked as a wildland firefighter in California and shared multiple photos of wildfires, as well as an image of a firetruck with the California Department of Forestry & Fire Protection’s logo, according to court documents.

The HSI agent wrote in charging documents that they found no evidence of Douglas working for Cal Fire.

“However, Cal Fire does have an inmate program which Douglas may have participated in while incarcerated,” the agent wrote.

Douglas’ sentencing is scheduled for Aug. 25 in West Palm Beach, according to the U.S. Attorney’s Office.

He’s facing at least 15 years in federal prison and up to life in prison, prosecutors said.

Homeland Security investigators in Miami and San Diego collaborated to find him, according to prosecutors.

Concerns or suspicions about child sexual exploitation can be reported to the National Center for Missing and Exploited Children’s CyberTipline online or by calling 1-800-843-5678.

If you suspect a child has experienced, is currently experiencing, or is at risk of experiencing abuse or neglect, your first step should be to contact the appropriate agency.

If you believe a child is in immediate danger, please call 911 for help.