Cabell County Man Sentenced to 52 Months in Prison for Traveling in Interstate Commerce to Engage in Illicit Sexual Conduct with a Minor

HUNTINGTON, WV—Otis C. Adkins, 60, of Branchland, Cabell County, West Virginia, was sentenced today by United States District Judge Robert C. Chambers to 52 months’ imprisonment followed by 20 years of supervised release for traveling in interstate commerce with intent to engage in illicit sexual conduct with a minor. Adkins previously pleaded guilty in December. An investigation revealed that on June 28, 2011, Adkins began chatting over the Internet with an individual who identified herself as a 15-year-old girl. Unbeknownst to Adkins, the minor was in fact an officer with the Ashland,Kentucky Police Department. Adkins admitted that from June 28, 2011 to July 13, 2011, he engaged in sexually explicit dialogue with the minor over the Internet and made clear his interest to engage in sexual activity with her. Adkins arranged to meet the minor at an Ashland restaurant on the morning of July 13, 2011. On that date, Adkins traveled from his residence in West Virginia to Kentucky for the purpose of engaging in illicit sexual conduct with the minor. Adkins was arrested by officers after he arrived at the predetermined location in Kentucky.

The Ashland, Kentucky Police Department; the Kentucky State Internet Crimes Against Children Task Force; the West Virginia State Police; and the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) conducted the investigation. Assistant United States Attorney Lisa Johnston handled the prosecution.

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 the United States Attorneys’ Offices and the Criminal Division’s Child Exploitation and Obscenity Section, 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.usdoj.gov/psc. For more information about Internet safety education, please visit www.usdoj.gov/psc and click on the tab “resources.”