PATERSON — A former Woodland Park police officer was sentenced to five years in prison today for attempting to sexually assault a 12-year-old girl.

Steven Vigorito Jr., 41, agreed to the prison term as part of an agreement with prosecutors earlier this year. He will also be required to register as a sex offender, and will never be able to work in law enforcement again.

A veteran of the Navy, Vigorito was arrested in April 2012, after a Woodland Park woman complained that he and her daughter had been exchanging sexually explicit text messages. The images included pictures of Vigorito exposing his penis while in uniform, and requests for the girl to meet him for sex.

Prosecutors say he and the girl had met while he responded to a call from her parents about her sneaking out of the house with an older boy.

The state's No Early Release Act will require Vigorito to serve at least 85 percent of his sentence before he is eligible for parole.