Atlanta Man Sentenced for Seeking Sex with an 8-Year-Old Girl

MARK MICHAEL STEVENS, 43, of Atlanta, Georgia, was sentenced today to 11 years in federal prison on a federal charge of attempting to entice a minor to engage in sex.

Sally Quillian Yates, United States Attorney for the Northern District of Georgia, said, “This defendant sought to have sex with an 8-year-old girl—not 18, but 8. His criminal conduct serves as a chilling but important reminder that child predators remain a threat in our community and that parents, teachers, and loved ones must remain watchful for our children, especially when they are online.”

United States District Court Judge Timothy C. Batten, Sr., sentenced BOWDEN to 11 years in federal prison, to be followed by a lifetime of supervised release.

According to United States Attorney Yates and the evidence in the public record in this case: In August 2009, STEVENS, an integrated technologies (“I.T.”) manager at Bull Realty in Atlanta at the time of the offense, met the mother of the 8-year-old in an online chat room known as “dad&daughtersex.” Of the course of several days, STEVENS, using the moniker “WickeDad.” and the mother—actually an undercover FBI task force officer—discussed how STEVENS could have sexual access to the mother’s daughter. STEVENS described in graphic detail what he hoped to do with the young girl and claimed that this would not be his first such experience.

STEVENS eventually sent photos of himself, clothed and unclothed, and provided a phone number so that he could speak with the mother and confirm that she and her daughter were “real.” During the phone calls, STEVENS again discussed the illegal sex acts he intended to perform with the girl.

On September 2, 2009, STEVENS traveled to J. Christopher’s Restaurant in Sandy Springs, where he and the mother had agreed to meet before retiring to the mother’s apartment so that he could have sex with her daughter. He was arrested as he stepped out of his car and has remained in custody ever since.

This case was investigated by agents and officers of the Atlanta Safe Child Task Force, which is led by the Federal Bureau of Investigation, Atlanta Division.

Assistant United States Attorney Robert McBurney prosecuted the case.

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Bibb County Sheriff’s Deputy Sentenced for Seeking Sex with 7-Year-Old Girl

Having been found guilty of attempting to entice a minor to engage in sex, GREGORY TODD BOWDEN, 44, of Byron, Georgia, was sentenced June 11 to 20 years in federal prison.

“Defendant Bowden sought to have sex with a 7-year-old girl. Seven years old. At the time of his crime, Bowden was a sheriff’s deputy—someone who had sworn to enforce the law and protect the public. He failed on both counts. With today’s sentence, the law has been enforced and the public will be protected from Bowden’s predations for 20 years,” said Sally Quillian Yates, United States Attorney for the Northern District of Georgia.

According to United States Attorney Yates and the evidence presented during the trial: BOWDEN, an eight-year veteran of the Bibb County Sheriff’s Department, frequented online chat rooms in which he engaged in fantasy role-playing about incest and other child sex acts. In October 2008, he befriended a woman online whom he believed to have a 7-year-old daughter. This woman—actually an undercover FBI task force agent—told BOWDEN she was willing to make her daughter available to him for sex. In February 2009, BOWDEN and the mother, through additional chats, e-mails, and phone calls, agreed to meet for the purpose of having three-way sex: BOWDEN, the mother, and the 7-year-old daughter. On February 11, 2009, BOWDEN drove 110 miles from his home in Byron to Sandy Springs, where he expected to meet the mother and her daughter. He was arrested at the scene. Agents later recovered a computer from his home on which they found child pornography and other evidence of interest in incest and sex with minors.

District Court Judge William S. Duffey, Jr., sentenced BOWDEN to 20 years in custody in the Bureau of Prisons, to be followed by five years of supervised release.

This case was investigated by agents and officers of the Atlanta Safe Child Task Force, which is led by the Federal Bureau of Investigation, Atlanta Division.

Assistant United States Attorneys Robert McBurney and Corey Steinberg prosecuted the case.

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Convicted Felon Indicted for Sex Trafficking of a Minor

CHESIRE MARTINEZ ROBINSON, a/k/a “Candyman,” 28, of Austell, Georgia, was arraigned today on federal charges of trafficking of a minor for sex; transporting a minor in interstate commerce for prostitution; and possession of a firearm by a convicted felon. ROBINSON, who is being held on unrelated state charges, was arraigned before United States Magistrate Judge Gerrilyn Brill and remains detained.

United States Attorney Sally Quillian Yates said, “The FBI and our other partner law enforcement agencies continue to see the brutal victimization of young girls by men who force them into prostitution, and use violence and intimidation to keep them there. We have charged a number of similar cases this year alone, and will continue to find and prosecute these predators who belong in a federal prison where there is no parole.”

FBI Atlanta Acting Special Agent in Charge Ricky Maxwell said, “Exploiting a minor child by forcing her into prostitution is a despicable act that cannot be tolerated. The FBI funds and operates a task force consisting of agents and officers from the surrounding area who are dedicated to combating child prostitution in the region by targeting those that exploit these minor children.”

According to United States Attorney Yates, the indictment and information presented in court: In or about July 2009, and continuing through on or about October 2, 2009, ROBINSON allegedly caused the victim, a 16-year-old girl, to engage in prostitution at various hotels and at a truck stop, in the Atlanta area. ROBINSON brought the victim, who he knew to be a minor, from her home in South Carolina to the Atlanta area. He then placed photographs of the victim in escort and erotic services sections of various Internet websites, and used those ads to recruit men to engage in commercial sex acts with the victim. When the girl refused to engage in commercial sex acts, ROBINSON allegedly beat the victim on several occasions. During a search of ROBINSON’s apartment on October 2, 2009, investigators found a 9 mm pistol that belonged to ROBINSON, who had previously been convicted of the felony offense of armed robbery in Cobb County, Georgia.

The indictment charges ROBINSON with conspiracy; sex trafficking of a minor; transporting a minor in interstate commerce for the purpose of prostitution; and possession of a firearm by a convicted felon. The charges carry a mandatory minimum sentence of 10 years, up to a combined, maximum sentence of life imprisonment, and a fine of up to $1,000,000.

This case is being investigated by the Federal Bureau of Investigation’s Metro Atlanta Child Exploitation Task Force.

Members of the public are reminded that the indictment contains only allegations. A defendant is presumed innocent of the charges and it will be the government's burden to prove a defendant's guilt beyond a reasonable doubt at trial.

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Former Grady Hospital Emergency Room Doctor Convicted of Child Exploitation Crimes

A federal jury today returned guilty verdicts against DR. ADAM WAYNE LEBOWITZ, 50, of Decatur, Georgia, on one count of producing child pornography and one count of attempting to coerce and entice a minor to engage in unlawful sex acts. The jury found him not guilty on another count of producing child pornography.

Acting United States Attorney Sally Quillian Yates said of the verdicts, “If not for the diligence of a mother and her son, and the quick work of county and federal law enforcement, this doctor could still be preying upon young victims. As a doctor, this defendant was responsible for protecting the health and safety of children, but instead endangered the physical and emotional safety of children by exploiting them. He will no longer be able to do that behind the bars of a federal prison.”

FBI Atlanta Special Agent in Charge Greg Jones said, “Dr. Lebowitz had a bright career wherein he had committed himself to helping others. Dr. Lebowitz forfeited that career by instead engaging in acts that exploited minor children and further acts that, without law enforcement intervention, would have exploited and victimized a minor child. This is a very unfortunate case but one that should serve as an example to parents that predators come from all walks of life and that parents must remain vigilant in order to play a role in proactively protecting their children.”

Coweta County Sheriff Michael Yeager said, “The Coweta County Sheriff's Office appreciates the work of the U.S. Attorney's Office and all agencies involved in bringing this case forward. Hopefully a very long period of incarceration will follow so no one else will encounter this individual.”

Clayton County Police Chief Timothy Robinson said, “I am proud to have our agency working closely with the FBI and the Safe Child Task Force. Because of the hard work, dedication and collaboration of these agencies, another child predator is off of our streets. It is just another example of how communities benefit from Multi-Jurisdictional Task Forces.”

According to Acting United States Attorney Yates, and the evidence presented in court: LEBOWITZ came to the attention of law enforcement officers at the Coweta County Sheriff’s Office on October 26, 2006, afer a victim, a 15-year-old boy, received a series of e-mails on the MySpace website, and sexually graphic instant messages on the AOL website, from LEBOWITZ. The victim’s mother contacted the sheriff’s office and reported these online messages sent by LEBOWITZ to her son. The sheriff's office then began an undercover investigation of LEBOWITZ that culminated in his arrest in the driveway of the victim’s home on November 2, 2006. Evidence at trial showed LEBOWITZ had planned to transport the victim to LEBOWITZ’s home in Decatur, Georgia, and had multiple condoms and sexual lubricants inside his vehicle at the time of his arrest.

Following the arrest, the sheriff’s office obtained and executed a warrant to search LEBOWITZ’s home. During the search, investigators seized three computers, two of which contained video recordings of LEBOWITZ engaged in sex acts with two young boys. Investigators discovered that these same video recordings were located on a VHS tape found inside his home during the search. Members of the FBI’s “Safe Child Task Force” identified the victims in the video recordings and contacted them. Both victims revealed that LEBOWITZ had recorded himself engaged in graphic sex acts with these victims when both were minors. An examination of LEBOWITZ’s computers, performed by the Georgia Bureau of Investigation (GBI), revealed that LEBOWITZ had sent images from his recordings of the two young victims over the Internet. He was indicted on the charges on June 12, 2007, and a superseding indictment was filed on February 9, 2010.

A sentencing date for LEBOWITZ has not yet been set before United States District Judge Richard W. Story. LEBOWITZ faces a mandatory minimum sentence of 15 years in prison up to a maximum sentence of life imprisonment as to Count Two of producing pornography, and a mandatory minimum sentence of 10 years in prison up to a maximum sentence of life in prison on Count Three, the attempt to coerce a minor.

This case was investigated by members of the FBI’s “Safe Child Task Force,” the Coweta County Sheriff’s Office, the Clayton County Police Department, and the Georgia Bureau of Investigation (GBI) with valuable assistance from U. S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement’s Computer Forensics Division. Assistance in this case has also been provided by the Coweta County District Attorney’s Office.

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Georgia Man Sentenced for Transporting a Minor for Illegal Sexual Activity

/PRNewswire/ -- Mack Gordon Harris Sr., 67, was sentenced today to 121 months in prison for transporting a minor for illegal sexual activity, announced Assistant Attorney General of the Criminal Division Lanny A. Breuer and U.S. Attorney for the Eastern District of Virginia Neil H. MacBride.

Harris, formerly of Social Circle, Ga., was also ordered today by U.S. District Court Judge James R. Spencer to serve 10 years of supervised release following his prison term, and to register as a sex offender.

Harris pleaded guilty on Nov. 30, 2009, to one count of transporting a minor for illegal sexual activity. According to court documents, in June 2005, Harris began communicating with a girl in Maryland, then 15 years old, through a Christian online chat room. Harris admitted that as he continued chatting with the victim during the next few months, he suggested they engage in sexual intercourse. He exposed himself on a computer webcam, urged her to send naked pictures, and engaged in "phone sex." Harris eventually visited the victim around the time that she turned 16, which is the age of sexual consent in Maryland. Harris admitted that several times during his visit and after the victim's 16th birthday, the two engaged in sexual intercourse.

Shortly afterward, Harris decided that he would take the victim to live with him in Georgia. Harris admitted that he instructed the victim to pack her belongings and leave farewell notes for her family. According to court documents, Harris picked up the victim in Maryland in December 2005 and began driving her to his home in Georgia. Harris admitted he told the victim that while traveling, she was not to speak with anybody, but if asked her age, she should respond that she was 25. During the journey, they stopped overnight at a hotel in Skippers, Va., where the age of consent is 18, and engaged in sexual intercourse.

The case was prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorney Elizabeth C. Wu of the Eastern District of Virginia and Trial Attorney Barak Cohen of the Criminal Division's Child Exploitation and Obscenity Section. The case was investigated by U.S. Postal Inspection Service and U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement.

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Bibb County Sheriff’s Deputy Found Guilty of Seeking Sex with Minor

After a three-day trial, a jury found GREGORY TODD BOWDEN, 43, of Byron, Georgia, guilty of attempting to entice a minor to engage in sex.

“Cases in which defendants seek to entice children to engage in sex are always disturbing; it is all the more shocking when the perpetrator is a member of our law enforcement personnel here in Georgia,” said Sally Quillian Yates, Acting United States Attorney for the Northern District of Georgia. “Defendant Bowden’s sexual pursuit of a 7-year old girl has resulted in a noteworthy conviction that will keep him away from children for many years.”

According to Acting United States Attorney Yates and the evidence presented during the trial: BOWDEN, an eight-year veteran of the Bibb County Sheriff’s Department, frequented online chat rooms in which he engaged in fantasy role-playing about incest and other child sex acts. In October 2008, he befriended a woman online whom he believed to have a 7-year-old daughter. This woman—actually an undercover FBI task force agent—was willing to make her daughter available to BOWDEN for sex. In February 2009, BOWDEN and the mother, through additional chats, e-mails, and phone calls, agreed to meet for the purpose of having three-way sex: BOWDEN, the mother, and the 7-year-old daughter. On February 11, 2009, BOWDEN drove 110 miles from his home in Byron to Sandy Springs, where he expected to meet the mother and her daughter. He was arrested at the scene. Agent later recovered a computer from his home on which they found child pornography and other evidence of interest in incest and sex with minors.

BOWDEN faces a mandatory minimum term of imprisonment of 10 years in prison; he could receive a maximum sentence of life in prison. In determining the defendant’s sentence, the Court will consider the United States Sentencing Guidelines, which are not binding but provide appropriate sentencing ranges for most offenders. BOWDEN will be sentenced on March 16, 2010, at 2:30 p.m., before United States District Judge William S. Duffey, Jr.

This case is being investigated by agents and officers of the Atlanta Safe Child Task Force, which is led by the Federal Bureau of Investigation, Atlanta Division.

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Roswell Man Arrested for Attempting to Solicit a Minor Child for Sex

Special Agent in Charge (SAC) Gregory Jones, FBI Atlanta, announces on behalf of the Northwest Georgia Crimes Against Children Task Force, the following arrest:

Christopher Rubush, age 35, a resident of Roswell, Georgia, was arrested at Whitfield County, Georgia on Saturday, October 10, 2009 on State charges related to attempting to solicit a minor child for sex. Rubush traveled to Whitfield County, Georgia after having engaged undercover officers/agents of the FBI’s Northwest Georgia Crimes Against Children Task Force in a series of chats on the internet.

Rubush, a retail credit department employee, is currently being detained at the Whitfield County Detention Center.

The Northwest Georgia Crimes Against Children Task Force consists of federal agents from the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) and officers from the Whitfield County Sheriff’s Office, Dalton Police Department, Dade County Sheriff’s Office, Rossville Police Department, and the Catoosa County Sheriff’s Office.

The public is reminded that all persons are considered innocent until proven guilty in a court of law.

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Man Sentenced to Nearly Five Years in Federal Prison for Transporting 14-Year-Old Girl That He Met on “My Space” from Virginia to Texas

Man Sentenced to Nearly Five Years in Federal Prison for Transporting 14-Year-Old Girl That He Met on “My Space” from Virginia to Texas for Criminal Sexual Activity


Branden Tye Holden, of Kennesaw, Georgia, was sentenced today by U.S. District Judge Sam R. Cummings to 57 months in federal prison, announced acting U.S. Attorney James T. Jacks of the Northern District of Texas. Holden, 19, pled guilty to one count of interstate transportation for criminal sexual activity in January 2009. Judge Cummings also ordered that Holden serve a 10-year term of supervised release and register as a sex offender. Holden is presently in custody.

Holden admitted that he and Jane Doe, a 14-year-old girl who lived in Virginia, met on “My Space.” Although Doe was actually 14, her My Space profile identified her as a 17-year-old female. In telephone conversations, Holden and Doe discussed engaging in sexual relations with one another.

On Thursday, September 25, 2008, Holden left his home in Georgia and drove to Virginia to pick up Doe and bring her to Georgia. After her parents went to bed, she left the house and met Holden who was parked a block from her residence, at a park. The next day, Doe told Holden that she really was 15-years old. Holden then began driving from Virginia through North Carolina, South Carolina and into Georgia, stopping along the way at rest areas where they had sexual relations.

On September 26, 2008, while he was near Augusta, Georgia, Holden received a phone call from his mother who told him that he was being sought by law enforcement for kidnapping. His mother told him that the girl he was with was only 14-years-old and that he needed to go to Woodstock, Georgia, and turn himself into authorities. At that time, Holden and Jane Doe decided to head west.

On Monday, September 29, 2008, Holden was stopped by a Texas Department of Public Safety Trooper in Crockett County, Texas, and was arrested. Jane Doe was with Holden.

Holden estimates that he engaged in sexual relations with Jane Doe approximately 10 times during his travels with her.

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 http://www.projectsafechildhood.gov.

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Member of Human Trafficking Ring Pleads Guilty to Sex Trafficking Charges

/PRNewswire-USNewswire/ -- Raul Cortes-Meza, 21, aka "Oscar," a Mexican national, pleaded guilty today in U.S. District Court in Atlanta to sex trafficking of a minor from Mexico, Acting Assistant Attorney General Loretta King of the Civil Rights Division and U.S. Attorney David E. Nahmias for the Northern District of Georgia announced.

According to the information presented in court, Cortes-Meza harbored a 17-year-old girl in the United States after she was pursued romantically by Cortes-Meza's alleged co-conspirator in Mexico, then smuggled into the United States and brought to the Norcross, Ga., area. After the victim's arrival in Norcross, Cortes-Meza, knowing that the victim was under 18 years of age, drove her to numerous apartments in the Atlanta metropolitan area to have sex with paying clients. Cortes-Meza instructed the victim to enter the apartments and provide fifteen minutes of sexual services to each man who was present, and subsequently collected money from the men with whom the victim engaged in commercial sex.

"Human trafficking occurs in hidden corners across the country," said Loretta King, Acting Assistant Attorney General for the Civil Rights Division. "Few crimes are more reprehensible than profiting from the sexual exploitation of a minor. The Department is committed to enforcing laws that put human traffickers behind bars."

"Human trafficking violates basic human rights and will not be tolerated," said U.S. Attorney David E. Nahmias. "Using girls under the age of 18 to engage in commercial sex acts is a serious violation of federal law. The victimization of the young woman in this case was unfortunately made easier by her illegal status, unfamiliarity with U.S. laws, and fear of law enforcement instilled in her by the trafficker. Federal laws protect all victims of such heinous crimes, whether or not they are U.S. citizens. No victim should fear coming forward to report illegal activity."

The sex trafficking of a minor charge to which Cortes-Meza pleaded guilty carries a mandatory minimum sentence of 10 years in federal prison. A sentencing date has not yet been scheduled by the court.

The prosecution of human trafficking offenses is a top priority of the Justice Department. In fiscal year 2008, the Section filed the largest number of federal criminal civil rights cases ever in a single year in the history of the Civil Rights Division, including a record number of both sex trafficking and labor trafficking cases.

The case is being investigated by special agents of U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement. The case is being prosecuted by Civil Rights Division Trial Attorney Karima Maloney and Assistant U.S. Attorneys Corey Steinberg and Susan Coppedge for the Northern District of Georgia.

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FBI Safe Child Task Force Arrest in Georgia

Special Agent in Charge (SAC) Gregory Jones, FBI Atlanta, announces the arrest of 42 year-old RUSSELL EDWARD WORSHAM. Worsham was arrested by Agents of the FBI’s Safe Child Task Force (SCTF) on Friday afternoon, January 23, 2009, for using an interstate telecommunications device (a computer) to entice a minor to engage in sexual activity. A criminal complaint issued in the Northern District of Georgia charges Worsham with violating Title 18, United States Code, Section 2422(b).

Worsham, an appliance repairman from Macon, Georgia, allegedly engaged in a series of internet conversations with what he believed was the mother of girl under the age of 10. During these conversations, Worsham allegedly made plans with the mother to travel from Macon to Atlanta in order to engage in sexual behavior with the child. In fact, both the mother and daughter were fictional, and Worsham was having the aforementioned conversations with an SCTF Agent acting in an undercover capacity. Worsham was arrested without incident upon his arrival at the agreed upon meeting place.

Worsham is expected to make an initial appearance before a United States Magistrate later today.

The Safe Child Task Force is comprised of FBI Agents working alongside Task Force Agents from the Sandy Springs Police Department, Lawrenceville Police Department, Tyrone Police Department, Roswell Police Department, Rome Police Department, Alpharetta Police Department, Clayton County Police Department, Duluth Police Department, and the Henry County Police Department.

The public is reminded that all persons are considered innocent until proven guilty in a court of law.

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