Urbana, IL-(ENEWSPF)- Senior U.S. District Judge Michael M. Mihm on May 10 sentenced Caleb Hickman, 46, of Granger, Ind., to serve 180 months (15 years) in federal prison for attempted enticement, sexual exploitation of a minor and attempted receipt of child pornography.
On Jan. 6, 2021, Hickman entered pleas of guilty to the indictment that charged him with attempted enticement of a minor; attempted sexual exploitation of children; and, attempted receipt of child pornography from Feb. 14 to May 26, 2020, in Kankakee and Champaign counties. Hickman was previously charged in a criminal complaint and was arrested on May 26, 2020, in Indiana.
According to court documents, Hickman used social media applications to contact and engage with an individual he believed to be a 14-year-old minor and made arrangements for the minor to travel from Champaign, Ill., to South Bend, Ind., to engage in sexual activity.
The FBI – Springfield Division investigated the charges with the assistance of the FBI -Indianapolis Field Office. Assistant U.S. Attorney Elly M. Peirson represented the government in the prosecution.
The case was brought as part of Project Safe Childhood, a nationwide initiative by the Department of Justice to combat child sexual exploitation and abuse. Led by U.S. 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.projectsafechildhood.gov.
This is a release from the United States Department of Justice.
