Roger B. Handberg, U.S. Attorney | U.S. Attorney for the Middle District of Florida
United States Attorney Roger B. Handberg has announced that Jeremy Wayne Leggett, a 38-year-old resident of Jacksonville, Florida, has pleaded guilty to attempting to entice a minor into sexual activity. Leggett, already a registered child sex offender due to prior convictions in 2020 for related offenses, faces a minimum sentence of ten years in federal prison and could receive up to life imprisonment along with potential lifetime supervised release. His sentencing is scheduled for April 28, 2025.
Court documents reveal that on June 16, 2023, an undercover FBI agent operating in the Jacksonville area posed as a minor online through a social media application. The agent interacted with Leggett under the username "dAddi," who had posted seeking contact with minors. Believing he was communicating with a 13-year-old child, Leggett sent photos of himself and proposed meeting for sexual activities.
Leggett continued his attempts over the following days to persuade the supposed minor to meet him and send sexually suggestive images. On June 19, he arranged to meet at a location in Jacksonville but fled when law enforcement attempted contact. He was subsequently arrested by officers from the Jacksonville Sheriff’s Office and FBI agents.
The investigation involved multiple agencies including the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI), Jacksonville Sheriff’s Office, and Naval Criminal Investigative Service. Assistant United States Attorney D. Rodney Brown is prosecuting the case.
This case falls under Project Safe Childhood, an initiative launched by the Department of Justice in 2006 aimed at addressing child sexual exploitation nationwide by coordinating efforts across various levels of law enforcement to prosecute offenders and protect victims.
For further information on Project Safe Childhood, visit www.justice.gov/psc.
