Man Sentenced to 10 Years’ Imprisonment for Online Enticement

ROCHESTER, NY—Donald R. Lemond, Jr, 51, of Constantia, NY, was sentenced to 120 months in prison and 20 years of supervised release today by U.S. District Judge Charles J. Siragusa, U.S. Attorney Terrance P. Flynn of the Western District of New York announced. Lemond pled guilty to one count of Using an Interstate Facility to Entice a Minor to Engage in Sexual Activity on September 26, 2008.

Assistant U.S. Attorney Craig R. Gestring, who handled the case, stated that between September 16, 2006 and December 13, 2006, the defendant engaged in online chats with someone he believed to be a 14 year old Rochester girl. In these chats, the defendant attempted to persuade, induce, or entice her into engaging in unlawful sexual activity. In furtherance of this, the defendant traveled to the Greece Ridge Mall on December 13, 2006 to meet with the girl, only to find that she was an undercover Monroe County Sheriff’s Deputy. He was arrested by members of the Sheriff’s Office and Agents of the Federal Bureau of Investigation.

This case was brought as part of Project Safe Childhood. In February 2006, the Department of Justice created Project Safe Childhood, a nationwide initiative designed to protect children from online exploitation and abuse. Led by the U.S. Attorneys’ Offices, Project Safe Childhood marshals federal, state, and local resources to better locate, apprehend, and prosecute individuals who exploit children via the Internet, as well as identify and rescue victims. For more information about Project Safe Childhood, please visit www.projectsafechildhood.gov.

The case was the culmination of an investigation on the part of the Monroe County Sheriff’s Office, under the direction of Sheriff Patrick O’Flynn and Special Agents of the Federal Bureau of Investigation, under the direction of Laurie Bennett, Special Agent in Charge.