Maryland man sentenced to prison for enticing a minor to engage in sexual activity

BALTIMORE – A Maryland man was sentenced to 10 years in federal prison followed by a lifetime of supervised release, for enticing a minor to engage in sexual activity following an investigation by U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement's (ICE) Homeland Security Investigations (HSI) the FBI and the Baltimore County Police Department with the assistance from Baltimore County's State Attorney's Office.

Larry W. Warner, Jr., 33, of Joppa, Md., was sentenced Friday by U.S. District Judge Benson E. Legg, who also ordered that upon his release from prison, Warner must register as a sex offender in the place where he resides, where he is an employee, and where he is a student, under the Sex Offender Registration and Notification Act (SORNA).

According to his plea agreement, in September and November 2010, Warner posted advertisements on an online website seeking girls' underwear to use in an act which he described in a sexually explicit manner. A Baltimore County detective responded to the ads. In one instance, he represented himself as the father of a minor girl. In the second instance, he represented himself as a prepubescent minor girl. In each case, Warner engaged in graphic sexual conversations and sent sexually explicit electronic photos of children or himself to the undercover detective.

On Nov. 3, 2010, Warner agreed to travel to a Baltimore County hotel to have sexual contact with what he thought was the minor daughter of the undercover detective, but Warner later cancelled the meeting, stating that his father was in the hospital.

In October and November 2010, Warner posted additional online ads wherein he offered free babysitting services for young children while also describing his own build, genitalia and sexual tendencies.

After several sexually explicit online conversations with the undercover detective, on Nov. 30, 2010, Warner arranged to meet the purported minor girl and her younger sister in Essex, Md., in order to engage in sexual activity. On Dec. 1, 2010, Warner drove to the meeting place and was arrested by Baltimore County Police officers.

On Dec. 2, 2010, Baltimore County Police officers executed a search warrant at Warner's residence and recovered a personal computer containing numerous images of child pornography.

The case was prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorney Mark W. Crooks.