NEWPORT NEWS, Va. - William Rollie Armstrong, 50, of Hampton, pleaded guilty today to charges of coercion and enticement of a child, and receipt of child pornography.
According to the statement of facts filed with the plea agreement, the parents of Jane Doe, a 12 year-old child from Michigan, contacted law enforcement to report that Armstrong was having inappropriate chats with their daughter. During the course of the investigation, federal agents were able to determine that the Armstrong befriended Jane Doe through a social networking site, InterPals, by pretending to be a 13 year-old boy from New York. Armstrong sent Jane Doe sexually explicit photos and also asked the child to engage in sexual conduct that would be a crime in Virginia. Agents executed a search warrant on Armstrong’s home in Hampton and seized electronic devices. Armstrong cooperated with agents and admitted that he used a profile picture of a young boy on InterPals. He also admitted to chatting with young girls, including Jane Doe, on various social media websites, and asked them to send him nude pictures of themselves. A forensic exam of the electronic devices revealed that Armstrong had images of child pornography as well as images of Jane Doe.
Armstrong faces a maximum penalty of life in prison when sentenced on May 19, 2016. He faces a mandatory minimum of 10 years in prison on the coercion and enticement of a child charge, and a mandatory minimum of 15 years in prison on the receipt of child pornography charge due to the fact that he is a convicted sex offender. The maximum statutory sentence is prescribed by Congress and is provided here for informational purposes, as the sentencing of the defendant will be determined by the court based on the advisory Sentencing Guidelines and other statutory factors.
Dana J. Boente, U.S. Attorney for the Eastern District of Virginia; and John S. Adams, Special Agent in Charge of the FBI’s Norfolk Field Office, made the announcement after the plea was accepted by U.S. District Judge Mark S. Davis. Assistant U.S. Attorney Lisa R. McKeel is prosecuting the case.
A copy of this press release may be found on the website of the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Eastern District of Virginia. Related court documents and information may be found on the website of the District Court for the Eastern District of Virginia or on PACER by searching for Case No. 4:15-cr-85.
Source: U.S. Department of Justice, Office of the United States Attorneys
