A 59-year-old Kent man charged with having sex with underage girls in Cambodia has pleaded guilty.
Entering the plea Tuesday in U.S. District Court at Seattle, Craig Thomas Carr admitted to repeatedly raping three different children while living in Cambodia. He was returned to the U.S. in May to face federal charges.
"Today's guilty plea sends a clear message to child predators who falsely believe they can travel to other countries with the intent of sexually exploiting children and avoid detection by U.S. law enforcement," said Leigh Winchell, special agent in charge of the Bureau of Immigration and Customs Enforcement's Homeland Security Investigations, according to a press statement.
The case began in December, when Cambodian police heard from their French counterparts that a taxi driver in Phnom Penh had advertised on the Internet that he could find child prostitutes.
The driver and Carr exchanged about 20 e-mails, according to an earlier the Immigration and Customs Enforcement news release.
Carr talked about wanting to have sex with girls around 12 years old. The driver said he could find girls of that age.
Carr went to Cambodia in January. He met the cab driver, then a woman who was apparently managing a brothel.
Carr told federal agents that he paid $3,000 to the cab driver and $4,800 to the woman who ran the brothel.
He also said he paid each girl $20 for allowing him to take sexually explicit photos.
Cambodian authorities arrested Carr on Jan. 22. The cab driver was also arrested and remains in Cambodia.
Carr faces a mandatory minimum 15 years in prison and up to 30 years in prison and lifetime supervised release when sentenced by U.S. District Judge Richard A. Jones on Oct. 29.
He was prosecuted under the PROTECT Act. The law, which went into effect seven years ago, substantially strengthened federal laws against predatory crimes involving children outside the United States by adding new crimes and increasing the penalties for these charges.
Entering the plea Tuesday in U.S. District Court at Seattle, Craig Thomas Carr admitted to repeatedly raping three different children while living in Cambodia. He was returned to the U.S. in May to face federal charges.
"Today's guilty plea sends a clear message to child predators who falsely believe they can travel to other countries with the intent of sexually exploiting children and avoid detection by U.S. law enforcement," said Leigh Winchell, special agent in charge of the Bureau of Immigration and Customs Enforcement's Homeland Security Investigations, according to a press statement.
The case began in December, when Cambodian police heard from their French counterparts that a taxi driver in Phnom Penh had advertised on the Internet that he could find child prostitutes.
The driver and Carr exchanged about 20 e-mails, according to an earlier the Immigration and Customs Enforcement news release.
Carr talked about wanting to have sex with girls around 12 years old. The driver said he could find girls of that age.
Carr went to Cambodia in January. He met the cab driver, then a woman who was apparently managing a brothel.
Carr told federal agents that he paid $3,000 to the cab driver and $4,800 to the woman who ran the brothel.
He also said he paid each girl $20 for allowing him to take sexually explicit photos.
Cambodian authorities arrested Carr on Jan. 22. The cab driver was also arrested and remains in Cambodia.
Carr faces a mandatory minimum 15 years in prison and up to 30 years in prison and lifetime supervised release when sentenced by U.S. District Judge Richard A. Jones on Oct. 29.
He was prosecuted under the PROTECT Act. The law, which went into effect seven years ago, substantially strengthened federal laws against predatory crimes involving children outside the United States by adding new crimes and increasing the penalties for these charges.
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