CRAIG CARR, 59, of Kent, Washington, pleaded guilty today in U.S. District Court in Seattle to sexual exploitation of a child in connection with his January 2010, trip to Cambodia to have sex with underage girls. CARR faces a mandatory minimum 15 years in prison and up to 30 years in prison and lifetime supervised release when sentenced by U.S. District Judge Richard A. Jones on October 29, 2010.

According to the facts admitted in his plea agreement, CARR made contact over the internet with a person in Cambodia who agreed to find minor females for CARR to have sex with during a visit to Cambodia. CARR paid this person approximately $8,000 for sex with these minor females during a week-long trip to Cambodia. CARR informed the person arranging the sexual encounters that he wanted the girls to be about 12-years-old. CARR sent his Cambodian contact sexually explicit photographs of minors to show the approximate age of the girls he was seeking. CARR also asked the source in Cambodia if CARR could take naked photos of the girls, and, he requested the address of a FedEx store in Phnom Penh, Cambodia, so he could send the photos to his Kent, Washington, home. CARR traveled to Phnom Penh from Seattle on January 13, 2010. He was arrested January 22, 2010. CARR admitted that he had sex with three young females over his eight days in Cambodia. His camera contained pictures of three young victims. Two of the victims have been located.

Under the terms of the plea agreement, the parties will recommend that CARR be placed on lifetime supervised release following his prison term. He will be required to register as a sex offender. CARR has agreed to pay restitution to the Cambodian victims.

“Today’s guilty plea sends a clear message to child predators who falsely believe they can travel to other countries with the intent of sexually exploiting children and avoid detection by U.S. law enforcement,” said Leigh Winchell, special agent in charge of ICE’s Homeland Security Investigations. “ICE remains committed to dedicating its investigative resources to deter this type of illegal activity in the future.”

This case was brought as part of Project Safe Childhood, a nationwide initiative to combat the growing epidemic of child sexual exploitation and abuse launched in May 2006 by the Department of Justice. Led by United States Attorneys’ Offices and the Criminal Division's Child Exploitation and Obscenity Section (CEOS), 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 to identify and rescue victims. For more information about Project Safe Childhood, please visit www.projectsafechildhood.gov.

This case was investigated by U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE). This case is being prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney Matthew Diggs.

For additional information please contact Emily Langlie, Public Affairs Officer for the United States Attorney’s Office, at (206) 553-4110 or Emily.Langlie@USDOJ.Gov.

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