Man Charged with Traveling Across State Lines for Sex with a Minor

ERIE, PA—A resident of Warren, Pennsylvania has been indicted by a federal grand jury in Erie on a charge of violating federal laws relating to the sexual exploitation of children, United States Attorney David J. Hickton announced today.

The four-count indictment named David Michael Lopus, 40, as the sole defendant.

According to the indictment presented to the court, Lopus traveled from New York to Pennsylvania on four separate occasions for the purpose of engaging in illicit sexual conduct.

Launched in February 2006, Project Safe Childhood is a nationwide initiative designed to protect children from online exploitation and abuse. Led by the U.S. Attorneys’ Offices, 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 identify and rescue victims. For more information about Project Safe Childhood, please visit www.projectsafechildhood.gov.

The law provides for a maximum total sentence of 120 years 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 Attorney Christian A. Trabold is prosecuting this case on behalf of the government.

The Federal Bureau of Investigation conducted the investigation leading to the indictment in this case.

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