CHARLESTON, WV (LOOTPRESS) – Jeffrey Lee Ward Jr., 31, of Bellaire, Ohio, pleaded guilty today to traveling in interstate commerce to engage in illicit sexual conduct with a minor.
According to court documents and statements made in court, on February 4, 2022, Ward traveled from Ohio to Parkersburg, West Virginia, to meet an individual he believed to be a 14-year-old girl in order to engage in sexual activity, including sexual intercourse. Ward had been communicating with the individual via an instant messaging app. Ward used the app to send a photo of his genitalia to the individual. When Ward showed up at their arranged meeting location, he was arrested.
Ward is scheduled to be sentenced on December 5, 2022, and faces a maximum penalty of 30 years in prison, five years to a lifetime of supervised release, and a $250,000 fine.
United States Attorney Will Thompson made the announcement and commended the investigative work of the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) West Virginia Human Trafficking and Child Exploitation Task Force, the West Virginia State Police, the Parkersburg Police Department.
United States District Judge Joseph R. Goodwin presided over the hearing. Assistant United States Attorneys Jennifer Rada Herrald is prosecuting the case.