MTV alum Connor Smith FINALLY arrested after year-long manhunt over allegations he tried to engage in sex acts with undercover cop pretending to be a child

Are you the one? alum Connor Smith has finally been captured by police – more than a year after a warrant was issued for his arrest.

In February 2023, it emerged that the former MTV personality was wanted by police in Illinois after he allegedly attempted to perform sex acts with an undercover officer posing as a girl under the age of 15.

Smith, 33 – who is alleged to have communicated with the fake minor online for ‘weeks’ before meeting her – was charged with grooming, traveling to meet a minor and distributing harmful material.

The sting operation led to a manhunt that lasted more than a year until Smith was arrested Thursday in Pinellas County, Florida. TMZ reports.

He was reportedly spotted in Florida more than once, eventually allowing authorities to locate him and take him into custody.

Smith is accused of having online sexual interactions with the undercover officer for “several weeks.”

He allegedly sent the fake teen explicit material of himself and planned to meet them for the purpose of performing sexual acts.

The publication reports that Smith drove up to the fake minor on Feb. 9 as the Lake County Sheriff’s Office drove up to arrest him — before Smith fled in his pickup truck.

A judge reportedly signed off on a $1 million bond if Smith were caught and arrested.

Last February, Lake County officials alleged that Smith indicated he intended to surrender but did not do so. They asked for tips to locate him while warning the public.

In 2021, Smith was arrested for allegedly raping and assaulting a 16-year-old girl.

The former reality star was taken into custody in Cook County, Illinois, although the crime reportedly occurred in Indiana, TMZ reported.

He was charged with one count each of rape and sexual assault, along with two counts of criminal confinement.

Smith, pictured on Are You The One?, is alleged to have attempted to perform sex acts with an undercover police officer posing as a girl under the age of 15

Wanted: Smith, 32, has an arrest warrant in Illinois after allegedly having online sexual contact for “several weeks” with an undercover police officer posing as a girl under the age of 15 (pictured in a 2021 mugshot after his arrest for alleged rape)

Cast: In 2015, Smith was part of the cast of the MTV dating series Are You The One?, which featured a group of singles looking for a relationship and all moving in together – Smith is seen above left

An arrest affidavit obtained by the publication outlines a shifting story of the teenage girl.

She reportedly told police that Smith kidnapped her in July while she was visiting family in Indiana.

She claimed they first contacted on Snapchat when she messaged someone about a cat they were selling and gave the address of the house where she was staying.

The alleged victim said a man ripped open her bedroom screen window and pulled her from her room that night before forcing her into his truck and taking her to a motel as he tried to sexually assault her.

But her story was changed in subsequent police interviews, and she later told authorities that she snuck away of her own accord to visit Smith after they met on a dating app.

She told police she “immediately had a bad feeling” after meeting Smith at his truck, and she claimed he forced her to perform oral sex on him as they drove to the motel.

The teen claimed he punched her repeatedly and even tried to strangle her during the harrowing ride, and once they got to the motel he allegedly urinated on her before forcing her to perform oral sex on him again.

Afterwards, she said Smith drove her back to the house and told her he would return the next evening to pick her up.

Photo: He then allegedly sent the fake teenager explicit material of himself and planned to meet them for the purpose of performing sexual acts

Prosecutors in Indiana later dropped charges against Smith, saying they could not prove their case beyond a reasonable doubt, The Times of Northwest Indiana reported.

Smith’s attorney Maryam Afshar-Stewart told the publication at the time, “While a dismissal is a step in the right direction, Mr. Smith still has a long way to go to repair the damage caused by these false allegations.”

In 2015, Smith was part of the cast of the MTV dating series Are You The One?, which featured a group of singles looking for a relationship who all moved in together.

Thanks to a matchmaking algorithm, the participants were combined into ideal couples. Their job was to determine the chosen couples, with a prize of up to $1 million to be distributed among the participants if they could correctly identify all the couples.