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Conn. Man Sentenced for Sex Crime with Minor
Rhode Island resident Joshua T. Robinson, 36, of Colchester, Conn., was sentenced to 46 months in federal prison followed by 10 years supervised release for traveling interstate to engage in illicit sexual activity with a girl he believed to be 14 years-old.
Robinson was arrested on September 4, 2015, by members of the Rhode Island State Police Internet Crimes Against Children (ICAC) Task Force. He pleaded guilty on February 18, 2016, to travel with intent to engage in illicit sexual conduct.
According to court documents, Robinson engaged in a series of increasingly sexually explicit emails with a person he believed to be a 14 year-old girl living in Rhode Island. He admitted to arranging a meeting with the teenager in Rhode Island where he would engage in sexual activity with her in exchange for a new iPhone. However, the person in the emails was, in fact, a member of the Rhode Island State Police ICAC Task Force.
On September 4, 2015, Robinson’s first attempt to travel to Rhode Island was thwarted when a tire on his vehicle went flat. He set out a second time to meet the teenager, but was arrested inside a retail store in Cranston, R.I., where he was to have met with the girl, purchased an iPhone for her and then traveled to another location to engage in sexual activity.
The case was prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorney John P. McAdams. U.S. District Court Judge John J. McConnell, Jr. imposed the sentence, announced by United States Attorney Peter F. Neronha and Colonel Steven G. O’Donnell, Superintendent of the Rhode Island State Police.
Robinson’s sentence serves as a reminder of the dangers of online predators and the importance of law enforcement’s efforts to protect children from exploitation.
Contact: Jim Martin (401) 709-5357, USARI.Media@usdoj.gov, @USAO_RI
Key Facts
- State: Rhode Island
- Category: Sex Crimes|Cybercrime|Child Exploitation
- Source: DOJ Press Release â†â€â€
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