A Crawford County man pleaded guilty in federal court on Wednesday to charges related to grooming and illegal sexual contact with a minor. Nathaniel Rod Gibson, 34, admitted to one count of travel with the intent to engage in illicit sexual conduct and one count of coercion and enticement of a minor.
According to court records, Gibson communicated with the victim through more than 18,996 text messages between March 10 and September 6, 2023. He gave the victim a phone for these communications and instructed her to delete flirtatious and inappropriate messages so they would not be discovered by her mother. In June 2023, Gibson transported the victim from Missouri to an Arkansas campground where he engaged in an illegal sex act with her. Similar conduct occurred at his home in Crawford County.
Gibson is scheduled for sentencing on April 15. The charge of travel with intent carries a potential sentence of up to 30 years in prison, while coercion and enticement of a minor carries up to 20 years.
The case was investigated by the Crawford County Sheriff’s Office, Diamond City Police Department in Arkansas, and the FBI. Assistant U.S. Attorney Jillian Anderson prosecuted 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 U.S. Attorneys’ Offices and the Department of Justice Criminal Division's Child Exploitation and Obscenity Section, 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 released by authorities.
