Lawrence Man Pleads Guilty to Attempting to Meet With a Minor for Sex

BOSTON – A Lawrence man pleaded guilty today in federal court in Boston to using an interstate facility to transmit information about a child.

Alex Bou, 22, pleaded guilty to one count of use of an interstate facility to transmit information about a child before U.S. District Court Judge Julia E. Kobick who scheduled sentencing for April 17, 2026. In August 2025, Bou was arrested and charged.

On Aug. 17, 2025, Bou responded to an advertisement posted by undercover law enforcement on a website commonly used to advertise commercial sex acts. The advertisement contained images of a young female and language purported to be written by a female describing herself as a “flower ready to blossom.” On Aug. 17, 2025, Bou sent a text message to the number listed on the advertisement saying, “U available,” to which an undercover agent posing as the purported minor responded suggesting Aug. 19, 2025.

On Aug. 19, 2025, Bou continued his conversation with the undercover agent. In their conversation, the undercover agent stated that she was a 15-year-old girl available to perform sex acts in exchange for money. Upon being informed that the purported minor was 15 years old, Bou responded with, “Ok are you a virgin?” Bou agreed to pay $175 to have unprotected sex with the purported minor and acknowledged that he was agreeing to have sex with an “underage girl.” Bou obtained her address via text message, and shortly thereafter arrived at the location where he was placed under arrest. 

The charge of using interstate facilities to transmit information about a minor provides for a maximum sentence of up to five years in prison, up to three years of supervised release and a fine of up to $250,000. Sentences are imposed by a federal district court judge based upon the U.S. Sentencing Guidelines and statutes which govern the determination of a sentence in a criminal case.

United States Attorney Leah B. Foley and Ted E. Docks Special Agent in Charge of the Federal Bureau of Investigation, Boston Division made the announcement. Valuable assistance in the investigation was provided by the Massachusetts State Police and the Boston Police Department. Assistant U.S. Attorneys Craig E. Estes of the Human Trafficking & Civil Rights Unit is prosecuting the case.

If you or someone you know may be impacted or experiencing commercial sex trafficking, please contact USAMA.VictimAssistance@usdoj.gov.

This case was brought in collaboration with 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 the U.S. Attorneys’ Offices and the DOJ’s Child Exploitation and Obscenity Section, Project Safe Childhood marshals federal, state and local resources to locate, apprehend and prosecute individuals who exploit children, as well as identify and rescue victims. For more information about Project Safe Childhood, please visit https://www.justice.gov/psc.