TheGarbageMan

MIAMI - A longtime South Florida meteorologist pleaded guilty Friday to using a computer to arrange a sexual encounter with someone he thought was a 14-year-old boy.

Bill Kamal appeared in federal court in Miami to enter his plea Friday, at times smiling and mouthing words to friends at the hearing.

The former chief meteorologist for WSVN-TV in Miami faces five to 30 years in prison without parole when sentenced Feb. 18. Prosecutors could recommend a sentence that falls below the federal guidelines, but District Judge K. Michael Moore noted he could also sentence Kamal above those parameters.

Kamal's plea agreement calls for him to give up his laptop and desktop computer, and for him to serve probation for the rest of his life.

"He's pleading because he wants to put this behind him," said Jeffrey Voluck, Kamal's lawyer.

Another Kamal lawyer, David Tucker, tried to add to the plea agreement that Kamal not be prosecuted for any pornographic images found on the computer hard drives. No decision was reached, and Kamal's lawyers and Assistant U.S. Attorney Robert Waters would not discuss the request after the hearing.

Kamal set up the Oct. 24 meeting at a convenience store after a series of discussions over the phone and Internet instant messaging with an Immigration and Customs Enforcement agent posing as a minor.

He was arrested by a federal task force and St. Lucie County sheriff's investigators as he stepped out of his black Jaguar at the store in Fort Pierce, about 115 miles north of Miami.