Mississippi Man Sentenced for Luring Columbia Teen for Illicit Sex

JEFFERSON CITY, Mo. – A Bay Springs, Mississippi, man was sentenced in federal court today for luring a 16-year-old victim in Columbia, Mo., to meet him at a hotel for illicit sexual activity.

Zachary Wes Buckley, 49, was sentenced by U.S. District Judge Brian C. Wimes to 16 years in federal prison without parole.

On Nov. 7, 2023, Buckley pleaded guilty to one count of enticing a minor to engage in illegal sexual activity. Buckley admitted that he traveled to Columbia and rented a room at a local hotel, where he had sex with the child victim.

Buckley and the child victim began communicating in an online chat room in January 2023 then moved their conversations to GoogleChat. The chats, which included sexually explicit conversations, photos and videocams, led to plans to meet in person. Buckley traveled to Columbia on Jan. 30, 2023, and met the child victim at a local park. He then drove to a Columbia hotel, where he engaged in sexual intercourse with the child.

This case was prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorney Ashley S. Turner. It was investigated by the Boone County, Mo., Sheriff’s Department, and the Jasper County, Mississippi, Sheriff’s Department.

Project Safe Childhood

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."