Defendant was a substitute teacher in the San Francisco Unified School District
SAN FRANCISCO - Paul Marshall Bodner was arrested on charges related to sex tourism in Vietnam, announced United States Attorney David L. Anderson and Homeland Security Investigations (HSI) Special Agent in Charge Tatum King. In an indictment filed on Jan. 30, 2020, and unsealed yesterday, a federal grand jury charged Bodner with repeatedly traveling to Vietnam in order to engage in illicit sexual conduct.
According to the indictment, Bodner, 64, of San Francisco, Calif., traveled to Vietnam during the period from July 2015 through August 2016, where he engaged in illicit sexual conduct. The indictment also states that Bodner traveled to Vietnam in March and July 2016 for the purpose of engaging in illicit sexual conduct. According to information presented to the court at his initial appearance on Feb. 13, 2020, Bodner met Vietnamese boys as young as 11 or 12 years old and engaged in sex acts with them at a hotel located in Ho Chi Minh City when he traveled to Vietnam.
The indictment charges Bodner with three counts of travel with intent to engage in illicit sexual conduct, in violation of 18 U.S.C. § 2423(b); and one count of engaging in illicit sexual conduct in foreign places, in violation of 18 U.S.C. § 2423(c).
Bodner was arraigned in federal court before the Honorable Joseph C. Spero, U.S. Magistrate Judge. Judge Spero scheduled a hearing for today, Feb. 14, 2020, to determine Bodner’s detention status pending trial.
Anyone with information about Bodner or his alleged sexual interest in children should contact the HSI Tip Line at 1-866-DHS-2-ICE and ask to be directed to the case agent.
An indictment merely alleges that crimes have been committed, and all defendants are presumed innocent until proven guilty beyond a reasonable doubt. If convicted on the charges in the indictment, the defendant would face for each count a maximum sentence of 30 years imprisonment, a life term of supervised release, and a fine of $250,000, plus restitution if appropriate. However, any sentence following conviction would be imposed by the court only after consideration of the U.S. Sentencing Guidelines and the federal statute governing the imposition of a sentence, 18 U.S.C. § 3553.
Assistant U.S. Attorney Lina Peng is prosecuting the case with the assistance of Morgan Byrne. The prosecution is the result of an investigation by HSI.
Source: U.S. Department of Justice, Office of the United States Attorneys
