McKinney, Texas, Man Faces 10 Years In Federal Prison For Trying To Meet A 14-Year-Old Girl At A Local Mall For Sex

DALLAS — Rodney Allen Thompson, 44, of McKinney, Texas, appeared today before U.S. Magistrate Judge Renée Harris Toliver and pleaded guilty to one count of transferring obscene material to a minor. He faces a 10-year federal prison sentence, up to a $250,000 fine and a lifetime of supervised release. Thompson has been in custody since his arrest in December 2012. A sentencing date was not set. Today’s announcement was made by U.S. Attorney Sarah R. Saldaña of the Northern District of Texas.

According to documents filed in the case, Thompson admits that in December 2012, he communicated with “Jane Doe,” an individual he believed to be a 14-year-old girl, whom he friended via Yahoo! Messenger. Jane Doe was in reality an officer with the Garland Police Department, acting in an undercover capacity. Thompson admitted that he communicated with Jane Doe in a sexually explicit manner, indicating that he wanted to engage in sexual activity with her. Using his computer and cell phone, Thompson ultimately persuaded, or attempted to persuade, Jane Doe to meet him at a mall in Garland to engage in illegal sexual activity with him. He also admitted that he sent Jane Doe, via webcam, an obscene video of himself engaging in sexually explicit conduct. On December 13, 2012, Thompson drove to meet Jane Doe at the mall, as they had arranged, and was arrested.

The case was brought as part of Project Safe Childhood, a nationwide initiative, which was launched in May 2006 by the Department of Justice, to combat the growing epidemic of child sexual exploitation and abuse. Led by U.S. Attorney’s Offices and the Criminal Division’s Child Exploitation and Obscenity Section, Project Safe Childhood marshals federal, state and local resources to better locate, apprehend and prosecute individuals, who sexually exploit children, and identify and rescue victims. For more information about Project Safe Childhood, please visit http://www.justice.gov/psc/. For more information about internet safety education, please visit http://www.justice.gov/psc/ and click on the tab “resources.”

The investigation is being conducted by the Garland Police Department. Assistant U.S. Attorney Camille Sparks is in charge of the prosecution.