Joseph Daniel Bair, a 40-year-old resident of Ladson, South Carolina, has been sentenced to 19 years in federal prison for attempting to entice a minor online for sexual activity. The sentencing follows an investigation by the South Carolina Attorney General’s Internet Crimes Against Children Task Force (ICAC) which began in November 2021.
During the investigation, an undercover officer created an online persona posing as a 13-year-old girl. Bair responded to this persona and engaged in explicit conversations expressing his intent to perform sexual acts with the supposed minor. On December 5, 2021, Bair traveled from Ladson to Charleston County intending to meet the girl but was instead met by law enforcement officers and arrested.
At the time of his offense, Bair was already on the South Carolina Sex Offender Registry due to a prior conviction in 2009 for criminal solicitation of a minor. It was also discovered that he had misreported his residence to sex offender registry officials.
United States District Judge Bruce Howe Hendricks sentenced Bair to 230 months in prison followed by lifetime court-ordered supervision. The federal system does not allow parole.
This case is part of Project Safe Childhood, an initiative launched by the U.S. Department of Justice in May 2006 aimed at combating child sexual exploitation and abuse. The initiative coordinates resources from various levels of government to prosecute offenders and rescue victims.
The investigation involved several agencies including the Department of Homeland Security, Mount Pleasant Police Department, and Charleston Police Department. Assistant U.S. Attorney Dean H. Secor is handling the prosecution.
