Joel Lance Roy, 54, of Rayne, La., was sentenced to serve six years in federal prison and
three years supervised release, for attempting to transport obscene material to a minor.
The sentence was handed down by U.S. District Elizabeth D. Foote in federal court in
Lafayette, La.
Roy pleaded guilty in March of 2012, to attempting to transport obscene material
to a minor. Documents filed with the court prior to the sentencing revealed that the
defendant engaged in online chats with a female he believed to be 14 years of age and from
California. He indicated that he was a 49-year old male from Louisiana and asked the girl
if she would like to chat with an older man. The defendant sent nude photos of himself
and web-cam shots of himself masturbating until he ejaculated. From November of 2007
through January of 2008, Roy chatted with the 14-year old female about engaging in
specific sexual acts if the two were together and expressed an interest in having a sexual
encounter with the girl. On January 8, 2008, the defendant sent a UPS package containing
a web cam and Victoria Secret’s underwear to the 14-year old female for the purpose of
having her video herself posing in various sexually explicit poses and sending the
images/videos back to him via the internet.
United States Attorney Stephanie A. Finley stated, “The defendant’s goal was to
entice a minor to participate in sexually explicit acts. We hope this sentence sends a
message that adults who participate in online sexual chats with minors for the purpose of
exploiting them will face serious consequences. The U.S. Attorney’s Office will continue
to vigorously prosecute these types of cases. We are committed to ensuring that those who
prey upon children will be held accountable.”
The case was investigated by Homeland Security Investigations (HSI) and the
Lafayette Parish Sheriff’s Office. The case was prosecuted by Assistant United States
Attorney J. Collin Sims.
This case was brought as part of Project Safe Childhood, a nationwide initiative to
combat the growing epidemic of child sexual exploitation and abuse launched by the
Department of Justice. Led by United States Attorneys’ Offices and the Criminal Division’s
Child Exploitation and Obscenity Section (CEOS), Project Safe Childhood marshals federal,
state and local resources to better locate, apprehend and prosecute individuals who exploit
children via the internet, as well as to identify and rescue victims. For more information
about Project Safe Childhood, please visit www.projectsafechildhood.gov.
The U.S. Attorney’s Office and the U.S. Department of Homeland
Security/Homeland Security Investigations/Immigration & Customs Enforcement (ICE)
encourages the public to report suspected child predators and any suspicious activity
through its toll-free hotline at 1-866-DHS-2ICE. This hotline is staffed around the clock by
investigators.
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