West Virginia Man Sentenced to Prison for Traveling to Have Sex with Minor Female
Defendant Sent to Prison for Nine Years, Followed by Lifetime Supervision

WHEELING, WV—A West Virginia man has been sentenced to 108 months in prison for traveling across state lines to have sex with a 14-year old girl, according to United States Attorney William J. Ihlenfeld, II.

MARK LORING DAWSON, age 52, of Charleston, West Virginia, was sentenced by Chief Judge John Preston Bailey as a result of his conviction for travel in interstate commerce with the intent to engage in illicit sexual conduct. DAWSON admitted that he drove to Sardis, Ohio and picked up a minor female and then transported her to a hotel in New Martinsville, West Virginia and engaged in sexual activity with her on multiple occasions in 2012 and 2013. DAWSON acknowledged that he misrepresented his age to the victim while chatting with her on a social media website and that he claimed to be much younger than his actual age.

Upon his release, DAWSON will be required to register as a sex offender, and he will also be under the supervision by the United States Probation office for the remainder of his lifetime. DAWSON remains in the custody of the United States Marshals while awaiting his designation to a Bureau of Prisons facility.

The case was prosecuted by U.S. Attorney Ihlenfeld and was investigated by the Federal Bureau of Investigation and the New Martinsville (WV) Police Department.