MOUNT LAUREL, NJ – Louis Goldenberg, 41, has been charged with attempting to entice a minor into prostitution using an online chat platform, according to an announcement from U.S. Attorney Philip R. Sellinger.
Goldenberg appeared before U.S. Magistrate Judge Sharon A. King in Camden federal court on September 19 and was released on a $100,000 unsecured bond.
Court documents and statements reveal that Goldenberg initiated conversations with an undercover agent on a messaging application in August 2023. The agent posed as a middle-aged woman with a 12-year-old niece. Goldenberg expressed interest in sexual contact with the minor multiple times over the course of conversations that spanned from August to September 2023. He specified a hotel in Mt. Laurel, New Jersey, for the encounter.
On September 18, Goldenberg traveled from Pennsylvania to the Mt. Laurel hotel, where he was subsequently arrested.
The charge of enticement carries a mandatory minimum sentence of 10 years in prison, a maximum term of life in prison, and a fine of up to $250,000.
The investigation was led by Homeland Security Investigations Newark, under the direction of Acting Special Agent in Charge Robert Kurtz. Assistance was also provided by the Burlington County Prosecutor’s Office and Mount Laurel Police Department. The prosecution is being handled by Special Assistant U.S. Attorney Katelyn Waegener of the U.S. Attorney’s Office in Camden.
Goldenberg is presumed innocent until proven guilty. The charges are allegations at this time.