Previously Convicted Louisville Man Sentenced to 40 Years and 6 months in Federal Prison for Enticement of a Minor

Louisville, KY – A Louisville man was sentenced on December 15, 2025, for online coercion and enticement of a minor, sexual exploitation of a child, and transportation of a minor for sex.

U.S. Attorney Kyle G. Bumgarner of the Western District of Kentucky, Special Agent in Charge Olivia Olson of the FBI Louisville Field Office, and Chief Paul L. Humphrey of the Louisville Metro Police Department made the announcement.

Nathaniel Covington, 25, was sentenced to 40 years and 6 months in federal prison, followed by a lifetime term of supervised release, for online coercion and enticement of a minor, sexual exploitation of a child, and transportation of a minor for sex. The Court ordered Covington to pay $3,000 in restitution to the victim.

Covington used an online social media application to meet a fourteen-year-old girl. He arranged to have the girl taken from Tennessee to Louisville, Kentucky for a sexual encounter. Once in Kentucky, Covington used his cellular phone to record himself engaged in sexual acts with the minor. Several days after Covington took the victim from Tennessee, an amber alert was issued for the child and Covington was found in Clarksville, Indiana with her. Covington was previously convicted in 2019 in Ohio for Unlawful Sexual Conduct with a different fourteen-year-old.

“Covington is a dangerous child predator,” said U.S. Attorney Kyle G. Bumgarner. “A 2019 Ohio conviction for Unlawful Sexual Conduct did not deter disgusting deviant behavior. Because of the important contributions from the Louisville Metro Police Department and the FBI, Covington will not have the opportunity to prey on any more children for at least four decades. Covington’s 40 years and 6 months federal sentence should be a siren to likeminded deviants that if they engage in this reprehensible conduct dire consequences will soon follow.”

“The relentless pursuit of child sex predators is one of the FBI’s top priorities,” stated Special Agent in Charge Olivia Olson of the FBI Louisville Field Office. “While this sentence should send a clear message to offenders who prey upon our community’s innocent children, it does not mean we will let up. We will not stop until every criminal who seeks to exploit or abuse our children is found and held accountable to the fullest extent of the law.”

LMPD Chief Paul L. Humphrey stated, “Detectives with the Louisville Metro Police Department’s Office of Sexual and Physical Investigations (OSPI) focus on prosecuting the most heinous criminals, and this case shows their impact. Working with our partners in law enforcement ensured that a dangerous predator is now off the streets for decades. OSPI will continue pushing every case forward to protect victims and ensure those who commit these horrific crimes face full accountability.”

There is no parole in the federal system.

This case was investigated by the FBI and the Louisville Metro Police Department with assistance from the Tennessee Bureau of Investigations, Blount County Sheriff’s Office, and the Jeffersonville Police Department.

Assistant U.S. Attorneys A. Spencer McKiness and Danielle Yanelli prosecuted the case.

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

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