Cary 'Santa' pleads guilty to child sex charges

A Cary man who played Santa Claus at area malls has pleaded guilty to charges stemming from accusations that he solicited a 15-year-old girl over the Internet for sex.

John Thomas Peters, 70, of 113 Crestpoint Court, was arrested in January on several charges after police picked him up at a fast-food restaurant in Apex, where he had planned to meet a teen.

Peters pleaded guilty Friday to second-degree sexual exploitation of a minor and soliciting a child by computer.

He was sentenced to 20 to 36 months in prison and must register as a sex offender when he's released.

His prison sentence is expected to begin Oct. 5.

Peters was arrested again in March on accusations that he also met a teen whom he found on Facebook and met her.

Court documents allege that Peters referred to himself as an amateur photographer looking for models.