Boca Raton Man Charged for On-line Enticement of Minor
Wifredo A. Ferrer, United States Attorney for the Southern District of Florida, Alysa D. Erichs, Special Agent in Charge, U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement’s Homeland Security Investigations (ICE-HSI), G. Matthew Immler, Chief, Boynton Beach Police Department, and Daniel C. Alexander, Chief, Boca Raton Police Department, announced the arrest and indictment of John Michael Romero Mendoza, 26, of Boca Raton, on charges of enticement of a minor over the Internet, in violation of Title 18, United States Code, Section 2422. A pre-trial detention hearing has been scheduled for June 18, 2012 at 10:00 a.m.
If convicted, Romero Mendoza faces a ten year mandatory minimum sentence and a statutory maximum penalty of up to life in prison, to be followed by a minimum of five years and up to a lifetime of supervised release. In addition, Romero Mendoza would face lifetime registration as a sex offender.
According to the affidavit filed in support of the criminal complaint filed earlier in the case, on June 6 and 7, 2012, Romero Mendoza used an on-line social networking application to contact and attempt to meet who he believed to be a 15-year old boy for the purpose of engaging in sexual activity. The individual he contacted was actually an undercover law enforcement officer, posing as a minor as part of a joint investigation to locate on-line predators. Before traveling to the pre-arranged meeting place, Romero Mendoza sent a pornographic image to the undercover officer.
Mr. Ferrer commended the investigative efforts of the South Florida Internet Crimes against Children Task Force, ICE-HSI, the Boynton Beach Police Department, and the Boca Raton Police Department for their work on this case. The case is being prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorney Brandy Galler.
An indictment is only an accusation and a defendant is presumed innocent until proven guilty.
A copy of this press release may be found on the website of the United States Attorney's Office for the Southern District of Florida at http://www.usdoj.gov/usao/fls. Related court documents and information may be found on the website of the District Court for the Southern District of Florida at http://www.flsd.uscourts.gov or on http://pacer.flsd.uscourts.gov.
