BLOOMINGTON, IND. (WOWO) A 61-year-old Indiana University economics lecturer has been arrested on a preliminary charge of child solicitation following an undercover online investigation.

James K. Self was taken into custody Thursday morning after Bloomington police identified him as the suspect in communications with an undercover officer posing as a 14-year-old boy. According to reporting from FOX59/CBS4, the investigation began after the Okaloosa County Sheriff’s Office in Florida conducted online operations in October 2025 aimed at identifying individuals seeking sexual contact with minors.

Police allege Self requested nude photographs, sent explicit images of himself and discussed meeting the purported juvenile in person. Investigators determined the suspect lived in Bloomington and conducted a traffic stop around 6:45 a.m. Thursday before taking him into custody.

Self was booked into the Monroe County Jail on one count of Level 5 felony child solicitation. Officers also executed a search warrant at his residence. Bond information was not immediately available.

Indiana University Bloomington lists Self as a senior lecturer in the Department of Economics and director of undergraduate studies. In a statement provided to FOX59/CBS4, a university spokesperson confirmed Self has been suspended and banned from IU property. The university declined further comment, citing personnel matters.

Formal charges had not been filed at the time of publication. The investigation remains ongoing.