Morgantown Sex Offender Sentenced to 10 Years After Traveling to Mexico to Purchase Child

CLARKSBURG, WEST VIRGINIA – Scott David Bixler, 43, of Morgantown, West Virginia, was sentenced to the statutory maximum sentence of 120 months imprisonment for failing to update his sex offender registration.  Bixler will serve a lifetime of supervision following his prison sentence.

Bixler is a convicted sex offender and is required to register under the Sex Offender Registration Act (SORNA) for life.  As part of his registration obligations, he is required to report any international travel. In July of 2023, Bixler fled to Mexico shortly before he was scheduled to appear in state court for sentencing related to criminal convictions for failure to register as a sex offender under West Virginia law.

When Bixler and his spouse were arrested in Mexico, they possessed two pellet guns, methamphetamine, a cell phone jammer, and a large amount of cash.  The investigation also revealed that the Bixlers were attempting to purchase a young girl while in Mexico.  Fortunately, Mexican authorities thwarted the plan and arrested the couple.

“The sentence handed down by the Court ensures that the Defendant will be confined in prison for the maximum time allowed by law,” said Acting United States Attorney Randolph J. Bernard.  “I shudder to think what might have happened but for the dedication of AUSA Perri, the federal and state law enforcement agencies, as well as the Mexican authorities.  Our community and children are safer because of their efforts and the sentence imposed.”

Assistant U.S. Attorney David Perri prosecuted the case on behalf of the government.  The FBI, the U.S. Marshals Services, and the West Virginia State Police investigated this case.

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 U.S. Attorneys' Offices and 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 Justice.gov/PSC.

Chief U.S. District Judge Thomas S. Kleeh presided.