A St. Louis man admitted on May 4 to driving a 12-year-old girl from Michigan to Missouri, where he engaged in illegal sexual acts with her.
Harold Paul White, age 56, pleaded guilty in U.S. District Court in St. Louis to one count of interstate travel with the intent to engage in illicit sexual conduct. According to court proceedings, White met the girl on social media and traveled to Michigan to pick her up before bringing her back to his apartment in Missouri. There, he engaged in illegal sex acts with the minor and recorded those acts using a phone. When the victim learned she had been reported missing, White purchased a bus ticket for her return home.
White is scheduled for sentencing on July 31, with both prosecution and defense agreeing to recommend a sentence of 15 years in prison. The Federal Bureau of Investigation and local police investigated the case, while Assistant U.S. Attorney Dianna Edwards is prosecuting it.
This prosecution is part of Project Safe Childhood, an initiative launched by the Department of Justice in May 2006 aimed at combating child sexual exploitation and abuse nationwide.
The U.S. Attorney's Office for the Eastern District of Missouri investigates and prosecutes federal crimes such as terrorism and fraud while enforcing civil rights; it collaborates with law enforcement agencies across its jurisdiction—which includes 49 counties—to prevent crime and improve community quality of life according to the official website.
