A Canadian man was sentenced to 11 years in federal prison
for sending scores of messages over social media attempting to coerce an
11-year-old from Ohio to engage in sexual activity.
Daniel Jason Wnek, 28, of Toronto, pleaded guilty last year
to one count of coercion and/or enticement of a minor.
Wnek contacted the victim, identified as H.M., via Instagram
in 2017. Wnek used the photograph of a younger male and falsely told H.M. he
was 14 years old. Wnek eventually switched their communication to Snapchat,
according to court documents.
Wnek eventually sent messages to H.M. that were sexual in
nature, such as: “Would u lie on top of me when we meet?” and “Yea x we can
take our pants off n I’ll bring a blanket,” according to court documents.
Wnek on Nov. 2, 2017 sent H.M. a sexually explicit photo via
Snapchat. He also suggested picking her up, engaging in sexual activity and
asked H.M. to send him sexually explicit photos of herself, according to court
documents.
H.M.’s family contacted police and on Nov. 3, in the
presence of law enforcement, another person posing as H.M. engaged in a
Snapchat conversation with Wnek. He continued to solicit H.M. for sex, sent
H.M. sexually explicit images and asked H.M. to send him sexually explicit
images of her, according to court documents.
On Nov. 13, Wnek advised who he thought was H.M. that he
planned to travel to Disney World in Florida for his birthday. Wnek was
arrested after traveling from Toronto to Orlando, according to court documents.
“This case demonstrates how predators will target our
children over social media by posing as people different from who they truly
are,” U.S. Attorney Justin E. Herdman said. “Parents and trusted adults need to
make it their business to know who their kids are communicating with.”
“Daniel Jason Wnek traveled thousands of miles in order to
meet up with a child for sex after luring the child online,” said FBI Special
Agent in Charge Eric B. Smith. “We must protect our children from online
predators. The FBI will continue to
pursue these vicious criminals and is pleased that Mr. Wnek will not be able to
threaten children's innocence or lives any longer.
The investigating agency in this case is the Federal Bureau
of Investigation and the Auglaize County Sheriff’s Office. The case was prosecuted by Assistant U.S.
Attorney Tracey Ballard Tangeman
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