TALLAHASSEE, Fla. – What began with a response to an online escort advertisement ended with a Tallahassee man arriving near an arranged meeting location, where federal authorities say investigators were waiting for him.
Amontea Allen John Mitchell, 28, has now been sentenced to 10 years in federal prison after pleading guilty to attempted enticement of a minor, attempted transfer of obscene material to a minor and possession of a firearm by a convicted felon.
The case grew out of an undercover operation conducted in April by the Leon County Sheriff’s Office, Homeland Security Investigations and Tallahassee police.
According to court documents, Mitchell responded to an online advertisement for a female escort and began exchanging text messages with an undercover officer.
The officer was posing as a 15-year-old girl.
Even after being told the person he was communicating with was 15, prosecutors said Mitchell continued the conversation, sent an obscene photograph and asked the person he believed was a teenager to produce and send him sexually explicit material.
The conversations eventually turned to an in-person meeting. Prosecutors said Mitchell expressed interest in having sex with the girl and later traveled toward the arranged location.
Law enforcement arrested him nearby.
Investigators searched Mitchell’s backpack and found three condoms and a firearm, according to court records. Mitchell was prohibited from possessing a gun because of previous felony convictions.
U.S. District Court records cited by prosecutors did not specify those prior convictions in the information announcing his sentence.
Mitchell will not be completely free of federal supervision after serving his prison term. He was ordered to serve another five years on supervised release and will be required to register as a sex offender.
The investigation involved Homeland Security Investigations, Tallahassee police, the Leon County Sheriff’s Office and the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives. Assistant U.S. Attorney Emma Schwan prosecuted the case.