East Texas man sentenced to 15 years in federal prison for sexually enticing a minor

LAREDO, Texas – An East Texas man was sentenced Tuesday to 15 years in federal prison following his conviction for attempting to entice a minor to have sex with him.

This sentence was announced by U.S. Attorney Kenneth Magidson, Southern District of Texas.  This investigation was conducted by U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement’s (ICE) Homeland Security Investigations (HSI).

Michael James Cortsen, 40, from Lake Jackson, Texas, was sentenced Dec. 6 by U.S. District Judge Marina Garcia Marmolejo who ordered Cortsen to serve 180 months in prison. Judge Marmolejo also ordered Corsten to serve 20 years of supervised release after he completes his prison term. He will also have to comply with numerous requirements designed to restrict his access to children and the internet, including registering as a sex offender. Corsten pleaded guilty to the charge Dec. 15, 2015.

According to court documents, Corsten posted a Craigslist ad for individuals interested in “family fun.” Soon after, he began a conversation with someone he thought had a 14-year-old daughter. Numerous times, Corsten mentioned sexual acts he wanted to perform on the fictional daughter. He also sent sexually explicit pictures of his genitals asking for them to be shown to the girl and stated he wanted the child to help him groom other children so that he could sexually assault them.

Corsten soon made arrangements to travel to Laredo, Texas, to have sex with the 14-year-old girl. He was arrested Oct. 9, 2015, upon his arrival.  

Corsten remains in federal custody pending transfer to a U.S. Bureau of Prisons facility to be determined in the near future.

Assistant U.S. Attorney Alfredo De La Rosa, Southern District of Texas, prosecuted this case.