Orlando Man Convicted of Attempting to Entice a Minor to Engage in Sexual Activity

ORLANDO, FL—A federal jury today found Justin J. Herring (30, Orlando) guilty of attempting to entice a child to engage in sexual activity. Herring faces a mandatory minimum penalty of 10 years and a maximum penalty of life in federal prison. His sentencing hearing is scheduled for November 26, 2012. Herring was indicted on June 27, 2012.

According to the testimony and evidence presented at trial, Herring used the Internet to communicate with individuals whom he believed to be the fathers of minor girls in order to arrange for sex with the children. After several months of making plans to meet the young girls for sex, Herring carried out his plan on June 7, 2012. He traveled two hours by bus to meet one of the fathers, at an Orlando restaurant, in order to have sex with his minor children. Unbeknownst to Herring, the individuals with whom he had been communicating were undercover law enforcement officers. When Herring arrived at the restaurant, he was arrested by agents from the FBI.

This case was investigated by the Federal Bureau of Investigation and the Brevard County Sheriff’s Office. It is being prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney Karen L. Gable.

It is another case 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 (CEOS), 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.projectsafechildhood.gov. For more information about Internet safety education, please visit www.projectsafechildhood.gov and click on the tab “other resources.”