Obion County Man Sentenced to 120 Months Imprisonment for Solicitation and Enticement of a Minor

Jackson, TN –Michael Beamish, 27, of Obion County has been sentenced to 120 months in federal prison for solicitation and enticement of a minor for sexual activity. U.S. Attorney D. Michael Dunavant announced the sentence today.

According to information presented in court, from January 30, 2017 through February 6, 2017, Beamish, used a cell phone and social media to coerce a fifteen year-old to engage in sexual activity. On February 4, 2017, the girl’s mother discovered the text messages and contacted law enforcement. Law enforcement began an investigation with the aid of the youth’s mother to communicate with Beamish. The defendant arranged to meet at a local park, believing he would meet the girl for sexual activity, and was arrested in Weakley County.

On August 27, 2018, Beamish pleaded guilty to using a facility and means of interstate commerce, a cell phone and the internet, to knowingly persuade, induce, entice and coerce a minor female to engage in criminal sexual activity.

On December 10, 2018, U.S. District Court Chief Judge S. Thomas Anderson sentenced Beamish to 120 months in federal prison followed by seven years of supervised release.

U.S. Attorney D. Michael Dunavant said, “With the proliferation of cell phones and social media, criminals are using more deceptive and disturbing ways to commit crimes against vulnerable victims, including the solicitation and enticement of children for sex. This office will always aggressively prosecute and seek significant and mandatory sentences for such predatory behavior in order to protect children and hold offenders accountable.”

This case was brought as part of Project Safe Childhood (PSC), 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 Attorney’s Offices and the Criminal Division’s Child Exploitation and Obscenity Section, PSC 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 PSC, please visit http://www.justice.gov/psc.

This case was investigated by the Dresden Police Department, Martin Police Department and the FBI.

Assistant U.S. Attorneys Debra Ireland, Kasey Weiland and Vic Ivy prosecuted this case on behalf of the government.