Clairton Man Pleads Guilty to Child Sex Trafficking Charge

PITTSBURGH - A resident of Allegheny County, Pennsylvania, pleaded guilty in federal court to a charge of sex trafficking of a child, United States Attorney David J. Hickton announced today.

Robert Allen Middlebrook, 41, of Clairton, Pennsylvania, pleaded guilty to one count of Sex Trafficking of a Child before United States District Judge Arthur J. Schwab.

In connection with the guilty plea, in February 2015, Middlebrook knowingly recruited, enticed, harbored, transported, provided and obtained a female minor, Minor A, to engage in commercial sex acts.

United States District Judge Schwab scheduled sentencing for May 9, 2016, at 9:30 a.m. The law provides for a maximum total sentence of life imprisonment, a fine of $250,000.00, and a term of supervised release for any term of years not less than 5, and up to life, or any or all.

Assistant United States Attorneys Jessica Lieber Smolar and Katherine A. King are prosecuting this case on behalf of the government.

The Federal Bureau of Investigation and the Pennsylvania State Police conducted the investigation leading to the indictment in 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 United States Attorneys’ Offices and the Criminal Division's Child Exploitation and Obscenity Section (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 www.projectsafechildhood.gov.