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| Paul Charles Wilkins has been jailed for 13 years |
An elderly British man who traveled to the United States to have sex with children, has been taken off the street, according to police in California.
Now, the suspect who traveled to the Coachella Valley to have sex with pre-teen boys and later pleaded guilty to transportation of child pornography, has been sentenced to 13 years in federal prison.
Paul Charles Wilkins, 70, of Littleport in East Cambridgeshire, England, was sentenced by United States District Judge Dolly M. Gee.
In addition to the prison term, Judge Gee ordered Wilkins to pay a $25,000 criminal fine and a $5,000 special assessment under the Justice for Victims of Trafficking Act of 2015.
Following the completion of his prison term, Wilkins be on supervised release for the rest of his life. Wilkins pleaded guilty in September to one count of transportation of child pornography.
When he pleaded guilty, Wilkins admitted that he traveled to the United States from the United Kingdom, for the purpose of having sex with two brothers, who were 10 and 12 years old at the time.
When that plan fell apart, Wilkins made arrangements with an undercover law enforcement officer to have sex with a 9-year-old boy in exchange for $250 at an apartment he had rented.
Additionally, Wilkins admitted that he possessed child pornography on his computer and brought child pornography from the United Kingdom into the United States, including graphic sexual images of boys between the ages of 5 and 8.
โThis defendant persistently engaged in the sexual exploitation of children,โ said United States Attorney Eileen M. Decker.
โHe was the administrator of an online group used by men to discuss their sexual interest in children, he traveled to the United States to have sex with two young boys, and he made arrangements with undercover agents to have sex with another young boy. Todayโs sentence ensures that children will be protected from his abhorrent conduct for many years,โ Decker said.
