JACKSONVILLE, Fla. — A judge has sentenced a Jacksonville man to 10 years in federal prison for attempting to entice a minor online to engage in sexual activity.
Michael Jonathan Paul, 50, pleaded guilty to his crime in April, according to court documents.
Investigators say between May 28 and July 28, 2020, Paul used Facebook Messenger to engage in a series of online conversations with an undercover detective with the St. Johns County Sheriff’s Office whom Paul believed to be a 14-year-old.
In an indictment, Paul discussed his desire to engage in sexual activity with the “child” when they met in person.
Following Paul’s arrest on Aug. 21, deputies say he admitted “talking to some little girl on the phone,” and stated, “I shouldn’t have … did it.”
“Thanks to the outstanding work by HSI special agents and our partners with the St. Johns County Sheriff’s Office this online predator was stopped in his tracks while attempting to victimize a young child,” said Homeland Security Investigations Jacksonville Assistant Special Agent in Charge K. Jim Phillips.
“After a successful prosecution and sentencing, this predator will now be held accountable for his crimes.”
Paul was also ordered to serve a 10-year term of supervised release and to register as a sex offender.
This is another case 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.justice.gov/psc.