ABERDEEN MAN SENTENCED TO 10 YEARS IN PRISON FOR TRAVELING TO HAVE SEX WITH A MINOR
Defendant Had Plan to Kidnap Young Girls to Mold into “Slaves”
WILLIAM JOHN DIEHL, 44, of Aberdeen, Washington was sentenced yesterday in U.S. District Court in Tacoma to ten years in prison and a lifetime period of supervised release. DIEHL traveled from Aberdeen to Washington D.C. after contacting a 15-year-old girl over the internet. DIEHL took the girl from her family and traveled across the country with her engaging in sexual activity and sending the pornographic images to others over the internet. At the sentencing hearing U.S. District Judge Ronald B. Leighton told DIEHL: “You are someone to be feared. You are a parent’s worst nightmare.”
DIEHL was arrested at his Aberdeen apartment on February 22, 2005. DIEHL’s brother had alerted police that DIEHL had arrived home with a young teen who he introduced as his fiance. According to documents filed in the case, DIEHL was having the girl treat him as her “master” and called her by a “slave name.” According to evidence uncovered in the case, DIEHL had written a detailed plan to kidnap two 7 to 9-year-old girls so he could mold them into perfectly submissive slaves. Over the internet DIEHL communicated with others about meeting “sex slaves.”
Judge Leighton accepted prosecutors recommendation and sentenced DIEHL to a prison term above the guidelines range saying, “you cannot be allowed to interact with vulnerable people in the misguided belief that (they) were presented for your pleasure.”
The case was investigated by the FBI and the Aberdeen Police Department. The case was prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney Vince Lombardi.
This case is being prosecuted as part of Project Safe Childhood. In February 2006, Attorney General Alberto R. Gonzales launched Project Safe Childhood, a nationwide initiative designed to protect children from online exploitation and abuse. Led by the United States Attorneys Offices, Project Safe Childhood marshals federal, state and local resources to better locate, apprehend, and prosecute individuals who exploit children via the Internet, as well as identify and rescue victims.
For additional information please contact Emily Langlie, Public Affairs Officer for the United States Attorney’s Office, at (206) 553-4110.
