Honduran National Indicted, Charged with Enticement of a Minor

DENNIS SORTO-ENAMORADO, age 29, a Honduran national currently living in Metairie, Louisiana, was indicted by a federal grand jury today for using a facility of interstate commerce to entice a minor for unlawful sexual activity, announced United States Attorney Jim Letten.

According to the indictment, SORTO-ENAMORADO knowingly used a computer, the Internet, and e-mail communicatio to entice a minor to engage in unlawful sexual activity.

If convicted, SORTO-ENAMORADO faces a mandatory minimum of ten (10) years’ imprisonment up to life in prison, followed by up to a lifetime term of supervised release, a $250,000.00 fine. Additionally, SORTO-ENAMORADO can be required to register as a sex offender.

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 Department 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.

United States Attorney Letten reiterated that the indictment is merely a charge and that the guilt of the defendant must be proven beyond a reasonable doubt.

This investigation is being conducted by the Federal Bureau of Investigation and special agents from the U.S. Department of Homeland Security, ICE as part of Project Safe Childhood. The prosecution of this case is being handled by Assistant United States Attorney Jordan Ginsberg.