62-Year-Old Maryland Man Sentenced to 140 Months for Trying to Sex with 14-Year-Old

A 62-year-old Maryland man has been sentenced to 140 months in prison for attempting to meet a 14-year-old girl in Washington D.C. for sex.

Jose Eduardo Valasquez, of Solomons Island, Maryland, was sentenced in U.S. District Court for the District of Columbia, announced U.S. Attorney Matthew M. Graves, FBI Special Agent in Charge David J. Scott, and Chief Pamela Smith of the Metropolitan Police Department.

Valasquez pleaded guilty to a count of coercion and enticement on December 15, 2023, before U.S. District Judge Tanya S. Chutkan. In addition to the prison term, Judge Chutkan ordered Valasquez to serve 15 years of supervised release and register as a sex offender.

According to court documents, Valasquez began communicating on social media with a person he believed to be a 14-year-old girl on November 16, 2020. In reality, the girl was an undercover officer working with the FBI/MPD Child Exploitation and Human Trafficking Task Force.

Valasquez, using an account bearing the username “Jose E V,” initiated a conversation with the undercover officer by sending a message in Spanish, saying “I really like you.” He eventually offered $200 to “be with her in bed.”

The 62-year-old Maryland man then arranged a meet-up in Northwest, Washington, D.C, after he got off work at 5 p.m. He sent amorous messages and exchanged text messages about being a 9th grader in high school. On the way to a motel for his expected tryst, Valasquez got a flat tire on I-395 and had to reschedule. He canceled another planned assignation after he was scared off by police.

Valasquez admitted that he drove from Maryland to the District to have sex with someone he believed was a 14-year-old girl, on the date of December 14, 2020. He arrived at the arranged meet location for the sexual act, only to be confronted by law enforcement and learn that the 14-year-old girl with whom he had been communicating was actually a law enforcement agent.

This case was investigated by the Federal Bureau of Investigation/Metropolitan Police Department Child Exploitation and Human Trafficking Task Force. It was prosecuted by Special Assistant U.S. Attorney Jessica Arco and Assistant U.S. Attorney Jocelyn Bond, as well as former Assistant U.S. Attorney Angela Buckner.