Two Middle Georgia men admitted to chatting with an undercover agent posing as a minor on a dating app and pleaded guilty in federal court Monday.
Darryl Lockett and Rashon Griggs were indicted for attempted coercion and enticement of a minor in April, but wound up pleading guilty to using interstate facilities to transmit contact information with a minor. The new offenses were detailed in updated court documents.
Prosecutors said both men will face a maximum prison sentence of five years with a $250,000 fine, and five years of supervised release.
Lockett appeared in court Monday in an orange jumpsuit and handcuffs. Griggs sat in the front row alongside his lawyer, Danisha McClary, and his mother.
Prosecutors revealed in court that the men thought they were communicating with a 13-year-old on a dating site. But an undercover agent was operating the profile. Despite learning the age of the supposed teenager, both men still expressed wanting to have sexual relations with the minor. They agreed to meet at a Circle K in Warner Robins.
Both men arrived at the Circle K on separate occasions and were detained by federal agents monitoring the store. Lockett was still in custody Monday, but Griggs was previously released on bond to take care of a disabled family member. Prosecutors attempted to have him detained Monday, but McClary successfully argued for him to stay out until his family member’s care arrangements can be finalized.
Both men will be sentenced Nov. 20 at the federal courthouse in Macon.
‘Operation Red Rover’ sting caught both men
Lockett and Griggs were caught in Operation Red Rover, an operation created by the Homeland Security Investigations Child Exploitation and Cyber Investigations Group. It was also carried out by the Air Force Office of Special Investigations, targeting online child predators. This Warner Robins-based investigation resulted in indictments against six other men for similar offenses.
Naimilkumar Dadawala and Marquaze Williams have already entered their guilty pleas. Steven Williams, Dewan Mitchell, Jon Wiltberger and Jose Santiago Longoria-Alvarez’s cases are expected to go to trial on Nov. 4.
Source Agencies
