Illinois man sentenced to 11 years in prison for attempting to entice a minor

SPRINGFIELD, Ill. — An Illinois man was sentenced Monday to 11 years in federal prison for attempting to entice a minor.

This sentence was announced by Assistant Attorney General Leslie R. Caldwell of the Justice Department’s Criminal Division and U.S. Attorney Jim Lewis of the Central District of Illinois.  This case was investigated by U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement’s (ICE) Homeland Security Investigations (HSI), and the Decatur (Illinois) Police Department, in cooperation with the Macon County (Illinois) State’s Attorney.

Jeffrey Parkhurst, 59, of Springfield, was sentenced Aug. 1 by U.S. District Judge Colin S. Bruce, Central District of Illinois, to 132 months in federal prison, to be followed by 15 years of supervised release. Parkhurst was convicted by a federal jury March 31.

During the trial, the government presented evidence establishing that Parkhurst knowingly attempted to persuade, induce and entice an individual who he believed to be a minor to engage in illegal sexual activity using the internet and a cell phone.  In addition, the government also presented evidence to establish that between January and July of 2015, Parkhurst posted more than 60 online ads to entice an individual who he believed to be a minor to engage in illegal sexual activity.

Parkhurst was arrested July 27, 2015, in Decatur and initially charged by state authorities. He has remained in custody since his arrest. Parkhurst was remanded to the custody of the U.S. Marshals Service Sept. 18, 2015.

Trial Attorney Elly Peirson of the Criminal Division’s Child Exploitation and Obscenity Section (CEOS) prosecuted this case.

This investigation was conducted under HSI’s Operation Predator, an international initiative to protect children from sexual predators. Since the launch of Operation Predator in 2003, HSI has arrested more than 14,000 individuals for crimes against children, including the production and distribution of online child pornography, traveling overseas for sex with minors, and sex trafficking of children. In fiscal year 2015, nearly 2,400 individuals were arrested by HSI special agents under this initiative and more than 1,000 victims identified or rescued.

HSI encourages the public to report suspected child predators and any suspicious activity through its toll-free Tip Line at 1-866-DHS-2-ICE or by completing its online tip form. Both are staffed around the clock by investigators. From outside the U.S. and Canada, callers should dial 802-872-6199. Hearing impaired users can call TTY 802-872-6196.

Suspected child sexual exploitation or missing children may be reported to the National Center for Missing & Exploited Children, an Operation Predator partner, via its toll-free 24-hour hotline, 1-800-THE-LOST.

For additional information about wanted suspected child predators, download HSI’s Operation Predator smartphone app or visit the online suspect alerts page.