Pennsylvania Man Found Guilty of Attempting to Entice a Minor Using the Internet

DOJ Press

United States Attorney Alison J. Ramsdell announced that Cody Wayne Hopkins, age 31, of Montgomery, Pennsylvania, was found guilty of Attempted Enticement of a Minor Using the Internet following a federal jury trial in Rapid City, South Dakota.  The verdict was returned on August 25, 2022.

The charge carries a mandatory minimum sentence of ten years up to life in federal prison and/or a $250,000 fine, a mandatory minimum of five years up to lifetime supervised release, and a $100 special assessment to the Federal Crime Victims Fund. 

Evidence at trial established that Hopkins was arrested and federally indicted as a result of an undercover sex trafficking operation conducted during the 2020 Sturgis Motorcycle Rally targeting internet predators.  Following multiple text messages with a person Hopkins believed to be a 13-year-old girl, but who was in fact an undercover agent, he proceeded to negotiate the time and place he would meet the minor to engage in unlawful sex acts.  When Hopkins went to the pre-determined location to meet the minor, he instead was met by law enforcement agents and placed under arrest.

The undercover operation was a joint effort between the South Dakota Division of Criminal Investigation, Internet Crimes Against Children Task Force, and Homeland Security Investigations.  Assistant U.S. Attorney Sarah B. Collins and Kelsey Blair tried the case.


A presentence investigation was ordered.  A sentencing date has not been set.  The defendant was remanded to the custody of the U.S. Marshals Service.


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