TALLAHASSEE MAN PLEADS GUILTY TO ATTEMPTING TO ENTICE OR PERSUADE A MINOR TO ENGAGE IN SEXUAL ACTIVITY

TALLAHASSEE, FLORIDA – Joseph Edward Hudson, 38, of Tallahassee, pleaded guilty in federal court to attempting to entice or persuade a minor to engage in sexual activity. The plea was announced by John P. Heekin, United States Attorney for the Northern District of Florida.

U.S. Attorney Heekin said: “Our community is fortunate to have such outstanding local and federal law enforcement officers who are committed to safeguarding our children against sexual predators like this defendant. Keeping our kids safe from sexual exploitation and victimization is one of the top priorities of my office, and my team of aggressive prosecutors will use the full force of the law to hold sex offenders, like this defendant, accountable for their disgusting crimes.”

Court documents reflect that between April 10, 2025, and April 12, 2025, detectives of the Tallahassee Police Department and other local law enforcement agencies, along with U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement’s Homeland Security Investigations, participated in a joint undercover operation in Tallahassee focused on identifying individuals using the Internet to exploit children in a sexual manner. During the operation, investigators identified the defendant, an adult male who was soliciting minors for sex through a social media platform. The defendant believed he was going to be engaging in sexual activity with a minor when he drove to a meeting location where he was met by law enforcement and immediately arrested.

Hudson faces a minimum mandatory of 10 years’ imprisonment, a maximum of life imprisonment, followed by five years to life of supervision upon release.

The case involved a joint investigation by the Tallahassee Police Department and the U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement’s Homeland Security Investigations, with assistance from the Leon County Sheriff’s Office. The case is being prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney Justin M. Keen.

Sentencing is scheduled for February 6, 2026, at 11:00 am at the United States Courthouse in Tallahassee, Florida, before United States District Judge Mark E. Walker.

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 and led by the U.S. Attorney’s Offices and the Criminal Divisions Child Exploitation and Obscenity Section (CEOS), it 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.

The United States Attorney’s Office for the Northern District of Florida is one of 94 offices that serve as the nation’s principal litigators under the direction of the Attorney General.  To access public court documents online, please visit the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of Florida website. For more information about the United States Attorney’s Office, Northern District of Florida, visit http://www.justice.gov/usao/fln/index.html.