Convicted sex offender indicted for child rape

SANDUSKY — A Collins, Ohio, man pleaded not guilty last month after being indicted on multiple counts of rape against a child. On Nov. 18, Aiden J. Sharp, 22, of the 2400 block of Collins Road, was arrested by the Erie County Sheriff's Office and booked into the Erie County Jail on nine counts of rape, each a first-degree felony. That same day, Sharp appeared in court for an arraignment where he pleaded not guilty, according to court records. Sharp was indicted by an Erie County grand jury on Oct. 30, with the alleged crimes taking place as far back as May 2014 through April 2022. Sharp allegedly engaged in sexual conduct with someone who was less than 10 years old at the time of the alleged offenses, according to his October indictment. As of Thursday afternoon, Sharp remains inside the Erie County Jail on a $100,000 bond. He has an upcoming court hearing scheduled for 2:30 p.m. on Jan. 12. Sharp's new charges come after he pleaded guilty to five felony child sex charges in a Huron County case earlier this year. On June 18, Huron County Common Pleas Court Judge James Conway sentenced Sharp to serve approximately six months in the Huron County Jail and three years of probation, according to court records. Sharp received a credit of about three months served in jail, ultimately reducing his sentence to only three months in jail. Under the terms of his sentencing, Sharp was classified as a Tier 2 sex offender, which means that he must verify home and work addresses every six months for 25 years, according to court records. Background The new investigation into Sharp began on June 5, 2025, when the victim disclosed to law enforcement that Sharp had allegedly been sexually assaulting them for a period of eight years, according to an Erie County Sheriff's Office report. The child said that if they refused Sharp's advances, Sharp would allegedly tell them that "no one loves (them)" until they complied, the report states. At the time of the child's statement, law enforcement was made aware that Sharp was incarcerated at the Huron County Jail due to previously pleading guilty in the earlier Huron County case, the report states. In Sharp's previous case, he was initially arrested on Feb. 14 by the Huron County Sheriff's Office and booked into the Huron County Jail on one count of unlawful sexual conduct with a minor, a fourth-degree felony. Sharp was later indicted by a Huron County grand jury in March on five counts of unlawful sexual conduct with a minor, each a fourth-degree felony; and five counts of illegal use of a minor or impaired person in nudity-oriented material or performance, each a fifth-degree felony. All of Sharp's charges stemmed from his engaging in sexual conduct with a child younger than 16 years of age. On May 6, Sharp pleaded guilty to four counts of unlawful sexual conduct with a minor, each a fourth-degree felony, and one count of illegal use of a minor or impaired person in nudity-oriented material or performance, a fifth-degree felony. Sharp pleaded guilty to the five charges in exchange for four additional counts of illegal use of a minor or impaired person in nudity-oriented material or performance and one additional count of unlawful sexual conduct with a minor to be dismissed.