A former FBI Most Wanted fugitive, Donald Eugene Fields II, was sentenced to 20 years in prison for child sex trafficking, U.S. Attorney Thomas C. Albus announced on June 24 in St. Louis.
Fields, age 62, provided sexual access to a minor in exchange for cash and other items from co-defendant Theodore “Ted” John Sartori Sr., beginning when the victim was 14 years old. Between winter of 2013 and summer of 2016, Sartori engaged in illegal sexual activity with the minor and gave Fields money, a car, a motorcycle, Christmas presents and vacations. In summer of 2016, Sartori financed a trip to Florida and drove the victim there with intent to engage in sexual activity. Fields instructed the minor to engage in sexual acts with Sartori.
U.S. District Judge Matthew T. Schelp told Fields during Thursday’s sentencing hearing that his crimes “warranted extreme punishment.” Fields was indicted on federal charges on December 7, 2022, after failing to appear in Franklin County Circuit Court on pending charges there. He was arrested January 26, 2025, after police stopped him in Lady Lake, Florida, and learned he was on the Most Wanted list. He pleaded guilty this April in U.S. District Court in St. Louis to one count of child sex trafficking.
“Donald Fields II believed he could outrun justice by fleeing to Florida after committing reprehensible crimes against a child in Missouri. He was wrong,” said Special Agent in Charge Chris Crocker of the FBI St. Louis Division. “Today’s sentence holds Fields accountable for the lifelong trauma he inflicted on his young victim. I commend the remarkable courage of the victim, whose willingness to come forward made justice possible, and the unwavering dedication of FBI investigators and our law enforcement partners — especially the Lady Lake Police Department.” Sartori is currently serving a ten-year prison term after pleading guilty in August of last year.
The case involved investigation by multiple agencies including Franklin County Sheriff’s Office and FBI with assistance from Missouri State Highway Patrol and Missouri State Technical Assistance Team; Assistant U.S. Attorney Dianna Edwards prosecuted it.
This prosecution is part of Project Safe Childhood—a nationwide initiative launched by Department of Justice offices since May 2006—aimed at combating child exploitation through coordinated federal resources targeting internet-based offenses against children as well as rescuing victims; more information can be found at https://www.justice.gov/psc.
The U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Eastern District of Missouri advances community well-being by working with entities to prevent crime and improve quality of life; it investigates federal crimes across its jurisdiction covering forty-nine counties using courthouses located both at Thomas F. Eagleton US Courthouse (St. Louis) & Rush H. Limbaugh Sr. US Courthouse (Cape Girardeau), operating under United States Department Of Justice authority while enforcing civil rights, according to its official website.