Monett man sent to prison for luring child into his home
Sep. 18—MOUNT VERNON, Mo. — A 32-year-old Monett man was sentenced to seven years in prison Monday when he pleaded guilty to enticement of a child and tampering with a victim in a felony case.
Danny R. Warren Jr. pleaded guilty in Lawrence County Circuit Court to the reduced count of enticement and to the tampering charge in a case in which he initially faced kidnapping charges.
His plea deal with the Lawrence County prosecutor's office called for seven-year sentences and dismissed related harassment and misdemeanor assault charges. Judge David Cole accepted the plea arrangement and assessed Warren concurrent terms of seven years.
The victim in the case, an 8-year-old girl, was walking home Oct. 28 when Warren called out to her as she passed his trailer home and offered her candy if she would step inside. He lured her into a back bedroom, picked her up and gave her a hug, scaring and upsetting her, according to a probable-cause affidavit.
He then put her back down but stood in the bedroom doorway blocking her escape and threatened to handcuff her, according to the affidavit. He eventually let her leave without having abused her in any other manner, and she went home and told her parents about the encounter, leading to the defendant's arrest.
