Sunbury Man Jailed 24 Months for Sex Offender Registration Fiasco

Sunbury Man Sentenced to 24 Months in Prison for Failing to Comply with Sex Offender Registration Requirements

WILLIAMSPORT – In a case that highlights the importance of sex offender registration laws, Xavier Josey, age 33, of Sunbury, Pennsylvania, was sentenced to 24 months in prison for failing to comply with the Sex Offender Registration and Notification Act.

Josey was required to register as a sex offender due to a 2013 conviction for indecent liberties with a child in North Carolina. However, he failed to do so upon establishing a residence in Pennsylvania, despite traveling interstate to the state and setting up a home in Sunbury.

According to the indictment, Josey was charged with failing to register or update his sex offender registration information in Pennsylvania, which is a federal offense. The case was the result of an investigation by the United States Marshals Service – Harrisburg office.

United States Attorney Gerard M. Karam praised the work of the Marshals Service in bringing Josey to justice. “Sex offender registration laws are in place to protect our communities from those who have committed heinous crimes,” Karam said. “We will continue to work tirelessly to ensure that those who fail to comply with these laws are held accountable.”

In addition to the prison term, United States District Court Chief Judge Matthew W. Brann also ordered that Josey be supervised by a probation officer for five years following his release from prison, that he undergo sex-offender treatment, and that he comply with all registration requirements of the Sexual Offender Registration and Notification Act.

The case was brought as part of Project Safe Childhood, a nationwide initiative launched in May 2006 by the Department of Justice to combat the growing epidemic of child sexual exploitation and abuse. Led by the United States Attorneys’ Offices and the Criminal Division’s Child Exploitation and Obscenity Section, Project Safe Childhood marshals federal, state, and local resources to locate, apprehend, and prosecute individuals who sexually exploit children, and to identify and rescue victims.

For more information about Project Safe Childhood, please visit www.usdoj.gov/psc.