Philadelphia Man Sentenced for Attempting to Sexually Assault a Minor

Austin Ayers Winther, 65, of Philadelphia, was sentenced today to 88 months in prison for attempting to entice another individual to travel in interstate commerce to engage in illegal sexual activity and four counts of attempting to transfer obscene matter to a child less than 16 years of age. Winther admitted that he attempted to entice a mother and her 13-year-old daughter to travel to Pennsylvania from Idaho to engage in illegal sexual activity and attempted to send obscene images to a minor. The “mother” and “child” were actually an undercover detective with the Boise Idaho Police Department. Winther pleaded guilty on November 28, 2011.

In addition to the prison term, U.S. District Court Judge Jan E. DuBois ordered a $500 special assessment and ordered 10 years’ supervised release.

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 in May 2006 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 case was investigated by the Federal Bureau of Investigation and is being prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney Sherri A. Stephan.