BISMARCK - U.S. Attorney Timothy Q. Purdon announced that on February 9, 2012, Rodney Goodwin, 47, of Dallas, Texas, was found guilty by a federal jury in U.S. District Court on a charge of attempted transportation of a minor for criminal sexual activity.

From June to October 2010 Goodwin contacted a girl in North Dakota by text and chat, using Mbuzzy, a popular online social network, and by direct telephone communications. The chats indicated Goodwin knew the girl was under 18 years of age. In October 2010 Goodwin devised a plan for the girl to run away from home and purchase a bus ticket so she could travel to Texas to meet Goodwin. The communications also indicated that once the girl arrived in Texas Goodwin intended to engage in criminal sexual activity with her. The girl ran away, but she was unable to arrange for Goodwin to transfer to her the money needed for her to travel to Texas, and eventually she returned home.

The charge of attempted transportation of a minor for criminal sexual activity carries a 10 year minimum mandatory up to life in federal prison and a statutory maximum $250,000 fine.

The case was investigated by the Department of Homeland Security (DHS), Homeland Security Investigations (HSI) Districts of North Dakota and Texas, the Morton County Sheriff’s Office and the Dallas Police Department’s Child Exploitation Unit.

Sentencing for Goodwin has been scheduled for May 4, 2012, in U.S. District Court in Bismarck, N.D., at 1:15 p.m.

Assistant U.S. Attorney Gary Delorme is prosecuting the case.

 

 

 

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