Houston Man Arrested For Traveling To Have Sex With 13-Year-Old Girl

Tampa, FL – United States Attorney Roger B. Handberg announces the arrest and detention of Tyler Colton Rock (26, Houston, Texas). A federal grand jury has returned an indictment charging Rock with production of child sex abuse material, enticement of a minor, travel with intent to engage in illicit sexual conduct, and transfer of obscene material to a minor. If convicted, Rock faces a minimum mandatory sentence of 15 years in federal prison for the production offense and a minimum mandatory sentence of 10 years’ imprisonment for the enticement offense.

If convicted on all counts, Rock faces a maximum penalty of life in federal prison for each offense. 

According to the indictment, Rock had a minor child victim send him nude images of herself and he sent her an image of his erect penis. Additionally, Rock traveled to the Middle District of Florida to engage in sexual intercourse with the child.

An indictment is merely a formal charge that a defendant has committed one or more violations of federal criminal law, and every defendant is presumed innocent unless, and until, proven guilty.          

This case was investigated by the Federal Bureau of Investigation and the St. Petersburg Police Department.  It will be prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney Abigail K. King.

This 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 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.justice.gov/psc.