180 Months: Tennessee Man Sentenced to 15 Years for Attempted Enticement of a Minor Who Said She Was 14
The U.S. Attorney's Office for the Eastern District of Arkansas announced that Dillon McKinney of Newbern, Tennessee, has been sentenced to 180 months (15 years) in federal prison for attempted enticement of a minor. U.S. Attorney Jonathan D. Ross said the sentence was handed down by U.S. District Judge James M. Moody, Jr. McKinney, 31, must also serve five years of supervised release, and there is no parole in the federal system.
McKinney was indicted by a federal grand jury on September 3, 2025, on one count of attempted enticement of a minor, and pleaded guilty on June 3, 2026.
The case began on June 19, 2025, when the Lonoke County Sheriff's Office and the Covenant Rescue Group conducted an undercover human trafficking operation. An officer posing as a minor female on a social media platform often used for soliciting prostitutes made contact with McKinney.
After moving the conversation to text messages, McKinney asked the 'minor' her age. She told him she was 14. He nevertheless proposed meeting for sex in exchange for money, traveled to the meeting location, and was taken into custody by law enforcement officers.
In a post-Miranda interview, McKinney admitted going to meet someone for sex even after learning she was 14, and officers found messages in which he agreed to pay a set amount for specific sexual acts.
McKinney's criminal history includes felony convictions for aggravated burglary, arson, burglary, and statutory rape.
The case was brought as part of Project Safe Childhood, the Justice Department's nationwide initiative, launched in May 2006, to combat child sexual exploitation and abuse.
The investigation was conducted by the FBI with assistance from the Lonoke County Sheriff's Office and the Covenant Rescue Group. Assistant U.S. Attorney Lauren Eldridge prosecuted the case.
Source: U.S. Attorney's Office for the Eastern District of Arkansas press release
Source: GSM · USA (original Chinese edition)
Photo: 图：位于 Washington 的美国司法部大楼。GSM联邦机构固定图库照片，摄影 APK，CC BY 4.0，来源 Wikimedia Commons。 / Photo: U.S. Department of Justice headquarters in Washington. GSM federal fixed image library photo by APK, CC BY 4.0, via Wikimedia Commons.
