Repeat Sex Offender Sentenced to 24 Years for Third Conviction

NEWPORT NEWS, Va. – William Rollie Armstrong, 50, of Hampton, was sentenced today to 293 months in prison for coercion and enticement of a child, and receipt of child pornography. Upon release from prison Armstrong will serve 25 years of supervised release.

Armstrong pleaded guilty on February 22.  According to the statement of facts filed with the plea agreement, the parents of Jane Doe, a 12 year-old child from Michigan, contacted law enforcement to report that Armstrong was having inappropriate chats with their daughter.  During the course of the investigation, federal agents were able to determine that the Armstrong befriended Jane Doe through a social networking site, InterPals, by pretending to be a 13 year-old boy from New York.  Armstrong sent Jane Doe sexually explicit photos and also asked the child to engage in sexual conduct that would be a crime in Virginia. Agents executed a search warrant on Armstrong’s home in Hampton and seized electronic devices. Armstrong cooperated with agents and admitted that he used a profile picture of a young boy on InterPals. He also admitted to chatting with young girls, including Jane Doe, on various social media websites, and asked them to send him nude pictures of themselves. A forensic exam of the electronic devices revealed that Armstrong had images of child pornography as well as images of Jane Doe.

This is Armstrong’s third conviction for sexual crimes involving minors. He was convicted of sexual assault in 1992 after engaging in sexual intercourse with a 15 year-old child, and in 1999 he was convicted of possession with the intent to distribute child pornography in Virginia Beach. 

Dana J. Boente, U.S. Attorney for the Eastern District of Virginia; and John S. Adams, Special Agent in Charge of the FBI’s Norfolk Field Office, made the announcement after sentencing by U.S. District Judge Mark S. Davis.  Assistant U.S. Attorney Lisa R. McKeel prosecuted the case.

A copy of this press release may be found on the website of the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Eastern District of Virginia.  Related court documents and information may be found on the website of the District Court for the Eastern District of Virginia or on PACER by searching for Case No. 4:15-cr-85.