Peoria, Ill. – A Peoria, Ill. man, Jimmy Deffenbaugh, 71, has been sentenced to 240 months in prison, to be followed by lifetime supervised release, for attempted enticement of a minor.
According to court documents in April 2020, Deffenbaugh, using a cellular device, responded to a solicitation ad in Peoria, Ill. and did knowingly attempt to persuade, induce, entice and coerce an individual who had not attained the age of 18 years to engage in sexual activity.
Deffenbaugh was arrested on April 9, 2020, following an investigation by the Federal Bureau of Investigation and the Illinois State Police. Deffenbaugh has remained in the custody of the U.S. Marshals since that time.
On March 18, 2021, Deffenbaugh entered a plea of guilty to one count of attempted enticement of a minor.
Assistant U.S. Attorneys Paul B. Morris and Douglas F. McMeyer represented the government in the prosecution and sentencing.
The case was brought as part of Project Safe Childhood, a nationwide initiative by the Department of Justice to combat the epidemic of child sexual exploitation and abuse. Led by U.S. 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.
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