Southern Indiana Man Sentenced to 10 years For Seeking Sex With Minor

       LOUISVILLE, Ky. – United States District Court Judge David Hale sentenced Donald L. Martin, of Floyds Knobs, Indiana to federal prison for 10 years for seeking sex with a minor and traveling with intent to engage in illicit sexual conduct, today announced United States Attorney Russell M. Coleman.

       “We will protect our kids,” stated US Attorney Russell Coleman. “Predators of this nature should seek professional help or seek a defense lawyer as we will pursue them with every legal weapon in our arsenal.”

       Martin, age 69, was arrested on September 2, 2017 at Pope Lick Park in Jefferson County, Kentucky where he had traveled with the intent of having sex with a 15-year old female he believed to be communicating with; Martin was actually communicating with cyber investigators working for the Kentucky Office of the Attorney General, Department of Criminal Investigations. Undercover investigators conducted a two-week investigation into Martin who sent sexually explicit text messages and emails to cyber investigators. At the time of Martin’s arrest he was in possession of sexual paraphernalia, generic Viagra, an empty packet of Cialis, an over-the-counter medication for male sexual performance enhancement, along with a handgun.

       At trial, a jury found Martin guilty of Attempted Enticement and Traveling with Intent to Engage in Illicit Sexual Conduct.

       This case was prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney Spencer McKiness and Jo E. Lawless, and was investigated by the Kentucky Office of the Attorney General, Department of Criminal Investigations, with assistance from the Louisville Metro Police Department and United States Secret Service.

***

       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 Attorney’s 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.