EAST ST. LOUIS, Ill. – William E. Jackson, 47, of Pevely, Missouri, was sentenced to 360 months in
prison on Thursday, March 24, 2022, for traveling from Missouri to Illinois to engage in sex with a
minor.
According to court documents, in April 2020, an FBI agent, acting in an undercover capacity,
located and responded to an online ad posted by William E. Jackson indicating Jackson’s interest in
incest. When the undercover FBI agent offered to have Jackson meet a fictitious ten-year-old female
minor for purposes of sexual contact, Jackson agreed to do so. On May 6, 2021, Jackson traveled
from Missouri to the Southern District of Illinois for the purpose of meeting the
fictitious ten-year-old female minor for sex. Upon arriving at the meet location, Mr. Jackson
was arrested by FBI agents. Following his arrest, Jackson’s cell phone was seized, which was found
to contain child pornography.
“Significant sentences, like the one announced today, are appropriate because those who try to
sexually abuse children deserve justice in proportion to the deviance of their behavior,” said
United States Attorney Steven D. Weinhoeft. “Our office will continue to aggressively prosecute
these cases and do all that we can to protect children.”
“This investigation and resulting noteworthy sentence illustrate the FBI’s efforts to protect
children from sexual predators,” said FBI Special Agent in Charge David Nanz. “Victims of these
types of crimes can suffer from long-lasting trauma, so it is vital we continue our efforts to
investigate and arrest those who prey on vulnerable children.”
This case was brought as part of Project Safe Childhood, a nationwide initiative launched in 2006
by the Department of Justice to combat the growing epidemic of child sexual exploitation and abuse.
Led by the United States Attorneys’ Offices and the Criminal Division’s Child Exploitation and
Obscenity Section, Project Safe Childhood marshals federal, state, and local resources to locate,
apprehend, and prosecute individuals who sexually exploit children, and to identify and
rescue victims. For more information about Project Safe Childhood, please visit
www.usdoj.gov/psc. For more information about internet safety education, please visit
www.usdoj.gov/psc and click on the tab “resources.”
The investigation was conducted by the Federal Bureau of Investigation – Springfield Field Office.
This case was prosecuted by Former Assistant United States Attorney Christopher Hoell and Assistant
United States Attorney Daniel Kapsak.