FAYETTEVILLE, Ark — A Winslow man was sentenced to federal prison Wednesday (Aug. 12) for attempted enticement of a minor for sex.
Jay Edward Thompson, 43 was sentenced to 10 years in federal prison without the possibility of parole followed by five years of supervised release on one count of Attempted Enticement of a Minor to Engage in Illegal Sexual Activity.
According to court records, in September 2019, the Homeland Security Investigations (HSI) Internet Crimes Against Children (ICAC) Task Force, the Arkansas State Police, and local law enforcement, set up an operation to target online predators in Northwest Arkansas. As part of the operation, undercover law enforcement investigators placed multiple advertisements on various online websites and mobile applications.
On Sept. 25, 2019, an undercover investigator (UC), posing as a 13-year-old minor female, was contacted by Thompson after he responded to one of the advertisements using his email address. The following day, Thompson arranged to meet with the UC and was taken into custody.
Thompson was indicted in Nov. 2019 and was found guilty by a federal jury in Fayetteville on March 3, 2020.
This case was investigated by the Department of Homeland Security, the Internet Crimes Against Children (ICAC) Task Force and the Benton County Sheriff’s Department.
