Sebastian Gets 10 Years for Attempted Minor Enticement

SIOUX FALLS, SD – William Danery Sebastian, 34, of Sioux Falls, will spend the next decade in federal prison after being sentenced for attempting to lure a minor. U.S. District Judge Roberto A. Lange handed down the 10-year sentence on June 23, 2025, alongside five years of supervised release and a $100 assessment to the Federal Crime Victims Fund. Sebastian will also be required to register as a sex offender upon his release.

The case originated with an undercover operation in March 2024. Homeland Security Investigations, the Lincoln County Sheriff’s Department, and the South Dakota Internet Crimes Against Children Task Force and Human Trafficking Task Force discovered Sebastian engaging in sexually suggestive online conversations with an individual he believed to be a 15-year-old female on Facebook. The chat quickly escalated, with Sebastian requesting a meeting for a sexual encounter.

Unbeknownst to Sebastian, he wasn’t communicating with a teenager, but an undercover law enforcement officer. The officer maintained the ruse, arranging a meeting location. When Sebastian arrived, he was immediately taken into custody. A federal grand jury indicted him in April 2024, and he pleaded guilty on March 27, 2025 – a desperate attempt to lessen the inevitable.

Assistant U.S. Attorney Elizabeth A. Ebert-Webb successfully prosecuted the case, presenting the damning evidence of Sebastian’s predatory behavior. The prosecution highlighted the calculated nature of the attempt, demonstrating Sebastian’s deliberate targeting of a minor. The sentence sends a clear message: online predators will be relentlessly pursued and brought to justice.

This conviction is part of Project Safe Childhood, a nationwide initiative launched in 2006 by the Department of Justice, designed to combat the escalating crisis of child sexual exploitation and abuse. The program coordinates federal, state, and local resources to identify, apprehend, and prosecute offenders, and to rescue victims. More information about Project Safe Childhood can be found at https://www.justice.gov/psc.

Following the sentencing, Sebastian was immediately remanded to the custody of the U.S. Marshals Service, beginning his ten-year term. This case stands as a stark reminder of the dangers children face online, and the ongoing efforts to protect them. Grimy Times will continue to follow this and other federal cases as they unfold.

RELATED: 13 Busted in San Sebastián Drug Ring