Man pleads guilty in federal court to soliciting child porn from Frederick County teen

Mary Grace Keller, The Frederick News-Post, Md.
·2 min read

Apr. 21—A Washington County man pleaded guilty in federal court recently to coercing and enticing a 14-year-old Frederick County girl to send him child pornography, according to the U.S. Attorney's Office for the District of Maryland.

The Frederick Police Department assisted in the investigation that led to the arrest of Boonsboro resident James Roger Maynard Jr., 53, according to a news release. Special Assistant U.S. Attorney Joyce King, chief counsel with the Frederick County State's Attorney's Office, was one of the prosecutors in the federal case.

Maynard pleaded guilty April 13. He faces a mandatory minimum sentence of 10 years in prison and a maximum of life in prison, plus a lifetime of supervised release. As part of his plea agreement, Maynard would be required to register as a sex offender upon his release.

Maynard, who was previously convicted of a sexual offense involving a child in a different case in 2014, reportedly met the 14-year-old at a bowling alley in Frederick County years before his arrest in December 2019, the News-Post reported in 2019. He contacted the 14-year-old through social media in November 2019, solicited photos from her and made sexual comments to her, the release reads. After sending the photos, the child reportedly felt upset and contacted a trusted adult for help.

Frederick County detectives and the FBI analyzed the child's tablet computer and social media records, leading to a search warrant being executed at Maynard's home on Dec. 5, 2019, according to the U.S. Attorney's Office. Authorities seized and examined Maynard's cell phone, finding an image of the victim. A computer in his home reportedly revealed Maynard searched topics related to sexual abuse of minors.

During an interview with investigators, Maynard at first claimed he thought the victim was 19, then admitted he knew she was 14 after investigators showed him the online messages they found, the release states.

A sentencing date has yet to be scheduled for Maynard. His attorney could not be immediately reached for comment Tuesday.

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