Crime & Safety
Man Travels to New London to Entice Minor Into Sexual Activity, Police Allege
A Colorado man was arrested after allegedly using a cell phone and app to entice a 13-year-old in New London to engage in sexual activity.
NEW LONDON, CT — A Colorado man was charged Tuesday, March 8, after allegedly using a cell phone and Internet-based messaging and video chatting services to entice a minor to engage in sexual activity.
Nathaniel Smith, 29, of Aurora, Colo., has been detained in Connecticut since Jan. 25, 2016. A 13-year-old girl from Preston, who had been reported missing, was found sexually assaulted by Smith on Jan. 25, according to Connecticut State Police.
The girl reportedly met Smith online, according to a report from Deirdre M. Daly, United States Attorney for the District of Connecticut. On Jan. 25, the girl was found in a room at the New London Holiday Inn with Smith, who was arrested and charged with sexual assault and risk of injury to a minor.
On March 8, a federal grand jury in New Haven returned an indictment charging Smith with entice a minor to engage in sexual activity. If convicted of enticement of a minor, Smith faces a mandatory minimum term of imprisonment of 10 years and a maximum term of imprisonment of life.
The matter was investigated by the Federal Bureau of Investigation, the New London Police Department and the Connecticut State Police.
An indictment is not evidence of guilt. Charges are only allegations, and a defendant is presumed innocent unless and until proven guilty beyond a reasonable doubt.
(Photo by Mariah Dietzler, via flickr creative commons)
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