A Georgia man stands to be sentenced to 30 years in prison for taking a 16-year-old Alpena girl across state lines, according to a plea agreement filed Monday in federal court in the Western District of Arkansas.
In an appearance Monday before U.S. Magistrate Judge James Marschewski in Fort Smith, Jason Delbosque, 39, entered a guilty plea to one count of "knowingly transporting a minor in interstate commerce with the intent to engage in criminal sexual activity." The judge tentatively approved the plea agreement, pending a presentence report. Formal sentencing is to take place within the next two months.
Delbosque will be required to serve at least 25 years of the sentence, according to a news release from the Carroll County sheriff's office.
According to the plea agreement, the girl told police she had engaged in sexual activity with Delbosque. The sexual activity involved in the case was consensual and not done for commercial or monetary gain, according to the court document.
According to the plea agreement, on June 13, the girl's parents called the sheriff's office to report her missing.
Through cellphone records, Sgt. Daniel Klatt determined that the girl had been in contact with Delbosque just before her disappearance. Delbosque traveled from Georgia to Carroll County on June 12, according to his cellphone records.
After an "extensive" state and federal law enforcement investigation, the girl was located June 23 in De Leon, Texas, about 135 miles west of Dallas. Later that same day, Delbosque was arrested by Texas police.
At the time, Delbosque was already required to register as a sex offender because of a previous conviction for aggravated sexual assault of a 14-year-old, according to the plea agreement.
The Alpena girl told police that she had been communicating with Delbosque for six months over the Internet before she met him in person. She said they had exchanged nude digital photographs before meeting, according to court documents.
Metro on 11/28/2014