Charleston County Sex Offender Sentenced to 10 Years in Prison for Failing to Register

Columbia, South Carolina---- United States Attorney Beth Drake stated today that Andre Youngblood, age 42, formerly of Hollywood (Charleston County), South Carolina, was sentenced today in federal court in Charleston, South Carolina, for Failure to Register as a Sex Offender, a violation of 18  U.S.C. § 2250(a). United States District Judge Richard M. Gergel, of Charleston, sentenced Youngblood to 10 years of imprisonment, followed by a lifetime of supervised release.

The Sex Offender Registration and Notification Act (“SORNA”), which was passed by Congress in 2006 as part of the Adam Walsh Act, provides a comprehensive set of minimum standards for sex offender registration and notification in the United States and seeks to strengthen the nationwide network of sex offender registration and notification programs.  In part, SORNA requires registered sex offenders to register and keep their registration current in each jurisdiction in which they reside, work, or go to school.

Evidence presented at the change of plea hearing established that in 2003 Youngblood was convicted and sentenced in New York for two counts of Sexual Abuse in the First Degree.  As a result of those convictions, Youngblood is required to register for life as a sex offender pursuant to SORNA.  Upon his release from prison, Youngblood registered as a sex offender in New York until March 2013. Youngblood later left New York and traveled in interstate commerce to South Carolina, where he lived between June 2014 and January 2015. However, Youngblood never registered in South Carolina as a sex offender as required by SORNA. Youngblood was located and arrested in New York in March 2016. Youngblood has been in custody since his arrest.

The case was investigated by the United States Marshals Service.  Assistant United States Attorney Dean H. Secor of the Charleston office prosecuted the case.

The case was brought as part of Project Safe Childhood, a nationwide initiative designed to protect children from online exploitation and abuse. Led by the United States Attorney’s Offices, 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 identify and rescue victims. For more information, please visit www.projectsafechildhood.gov.

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