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Press Release

Butler County Man Charged with Transporting Minors for Sex

For Immediate Release
U.S. Attorney's Office, Western District of Pennsylvania

PITTSBURGH -A Butler County resident has been indicted by a federal grand jury in Pittsburgh on charges of sexual misconduct and ordered detained, United States Attorney David J. Hickton announced today.

The four-count indictment, returned on November 9 and unsealed yesterday, named James Mark Leroy, 54, of Renfrew, PA. According to the indictment presented to the court, Leroy, on two separate occasions, traveled out of state and transported minors with the intent to engage in illicit sexual conduct.

Following a detention hearing, Magistrate Judge Lisa Pupo Lenihan ordered that Leroy remain in the custody of the United States Marshals pending trial. According to evidence presented to the court, Leroy sexually exploited four minor children between 2009 and 2016 at his home and on interstate trips. Testimony presented by Detective John Hertzog of Butler County also detailed direct and indirect efforts by Leroy to obstruct the investigation.

Anyone with information that may help identify additional victims of James Mark Leroy is asked to contact the Federal Bureau of Investigation – Pittsburgh Division at 412-432-4000.

The law provides for a maximum total sentence of not less than 10 years and up to life in prison, a fine of $1,000,000, or both. Under the Federal Sentencing Guidelines, the actual sentence imposed would be based upon the seriousness of the offenses and the prior criminal history, if any, of the defendant.

Assistant United States Attorneys Soo C. Song and Heidi M. Grogan are prosecuting this case on behalf of the government.

The Federal Bureau of Investigation, Penn Township Police, and Butler County conducted the investigation leading to the indictment in this case.

This case was brought as part of Project Safe Childhood, a nationwide initiative to combat the growing epidemic of child sexual exploitation and abuse launched in May 2006 by the Depart of Justice. Led by 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 better locate, apprehend and prosecute individuals who exploit children via the Internet, as well as to identify and rescue victims. For more information about Project Safe Childhood, please visit www.projectsafechildhood.gov.

An indictment is an accusation. A defendant is presumed innocent unless and until proven guilty.

Updated November 23, 2016

Topic
Project Safe Childhood