January 8, 2008
For more information contact:
Alan Sprowls at (850) 942-8430
FEDERAL JURY IN TALLAHASSEE CONVICTS ORLANDO MAN OF INTERNET SOLICITATION OF A MINOR
Tallahassee, Florida – United States Attorney Gregory R. Miller, Northern District of Florida, announces the conviction of Mohammed Ali Liton for using a means of interstate communication to attempt to entice a minor in Tallahassee to engage in illegal sexual activity, in violation of Title 18, United States Code, Section 2422(b).
Liton, 26, of Orlando, Florida, was convicted at the close of a two-day jury trial in before Chief United States District Judge Hinkle. At trial, the government presented evidence that between October 1, 2007, and October 3, 2007, Liton engaged in a sexually explicit dialogue with an undercover FDLE agent posing as “Cindy B, ”a fourteen-year-old girl living in Tallahassee. During the course of several internet chats, Liton asked whether “Cindy B” was a virgin, asked to have sex with her, and made arrangements to travel to Tallahassee to do so. During the same period, Liton also spoke with an undercover agent posing as Cindy B on the telephone. On the evening of October 3, 2007, defendant drove from Orlando to a pre-arranged location in Tallahassee, where he and Cindy B had agreed to meet. He was arrested upon arrival. Following a search of his vehicle, law enforcement recovered a box of condoms and internet directions to the meeting place.
Liton faces a mandatory minimum sentence of ten years to life imprisonment, and a $250,000 fine. Sentencing is scheduled for March 24, 2008 at 11:00 a.m.
Mr. Miller praised the Florida Department of Law Enforcement, Florida’s Office of the Attorney General, the Tallahassee Police Department, the United States Marshals Service, the State Attorney’s Office, and the Florida Highway Patrol for their outstanding efforts in the investigation and prosecution of this case.
The case was prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney Robert Davis.