SAN ANTONIO – A San Antonio man was sentenced in a federal court to 151 months in federal prison and 20 years of supervised release for attempted online enticement and coercion of a minor, according to a recent court filing.
Stephen Eugene Hall, 41, was found guilty on two counts of attempted online enticement and coercion of a minor. He was arrested by FBI agents on Aug. 23, 2023, when he traveled to a hotel in San Antonio with the intent to engage in sex with a 14-year-old girl he thought was a child.
The investigation was conducted by the FBI and involved undercover law enforcement agents who posed as minors on the Kik app. Hall communicated with the agents between June and August of 2023, attempting to entice them to engage in sexual activity and produce child sexual abuse material (CSAM).
U.S. Attorney Justin R. Simmons for the Western District of Texas praised the proactive law enforcement operations that caught Hall. ‘These proactive law enforcement operations, using the social media apps many children use today, are vital and necessary in order to catch child predators before they can cause their irreparable intended harm,’ Simmons said.
The FBI’s San Antonio Field Office also released a statement, saying that the sentencing ‘sends a clear message that neither the FBI, our law enforcement partners, nor the American people will tolerate those who seek to sexually abuse or exploit children.’
This case was brought as part of Project Safe Childhood, a nationwide initiative to combat the epidemic of child sexual exploitation and abuse launched in May 2006 by the government. Led by U.S. Attorneys’ Offices, the initiative 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.
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Key Facts
- State: Texas
- Category: Cybercrime|Sex Crimes
- Source: DOJ Press Release â†â€â€
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