A registered sex offender from Washington state has pleaded guilty to federal charges of sexually exploiting ten minor girls, ages 12 to 16, after removing his electronic monitoring device and fleeing state supervision. The announcement was made by Acting U.S. Attorney Teal Luthy Miller.
James “Jake” Harrison Newcomer, 28, admitted in U.S. District Court in Seattle that he abused the minors between February and April 2024 after contacting them through various social media platforms. Both prosecutors and defense attorneys are set to recommend a sentence of 17 years in prison when Newcomer appears before U.S. District Judge John H. Chun on November 17, 2025.
Court records show that Newcomer had been under state supervision following a previous 30-month prison sentence for two counts of rape of a child. As part of his release conditions, he wore an ankle monitor. On January 19, 2024, the monitor lost connection; when corrections officers attempted to arrest him six days later, they discovered he had left his residence and could not be found.
During the next three months, Newcomer used social media to connect with teenage girls from multiple counties across Washington—King, Kitap, Snohomish, Lewis, Clark, Thurston, and Spokane—as well as Woodburn, Oregon. He arranged meetings where he provided drugs and alcohol before sexually assaulting them.
Newcomer pleaded guilty to one count of travel with intent to engage in sexual acts with a minor and two counts of attempted enticement of a minor. The charge of travel with intent carries a potential penalty of up to 30 years in prison. Enticement of a minor is punishable by a mandatory minimum sentence of ten years and up to life imprisonment.
The investigation involved multiple agencies including the FBI; police departments from Woodburn (Oregon), Auburn, Snoqualmie, Black Diamond, Des Moines; the King County Sheriff’s Office; the Kent Police Department; Marion County District Attorney’s Office; and assistance from the Department of Corrections.
Assistant United States Attorney Cecelia Gregson is prosecuting the case.
“This case was brought as part of Project Safe Childhood, a nationwide initiative to combat the growing epidemic of child sexual exploitation and abuse launched in May 2006 by the Department of Justice. Led by United States Attorneys’ Offices and the Criminal Division's Child Exploitation and Obscenity Section (CEOS), Project Safe Childhood marshals federal, state, and local resources to better locate, apprehend and prosecute individuals who exploit children via the Internet, as well as to identify and rescue victims. For more information about Project Safe Childhood, please visit www.justice.gov/psc,” according to information provided by officials.
