ST. LOUIS — A jury found a man guilty Wednesday in St. Louis Circuit Court for attempted enticement of a 10-year-old girl on a messaging app in 2019.
Raymond Gardner, 42, was found guilty of attempted enticement of a child after he tried to entice a 10-year-old girl to send him sexually explicit images of herself four years ago, according to a press release from the St. Louis Circuit Attorney's Office.
St. Louis police said the girl set up an online account on the adult dating website, Fling, to seek adult men under the impression that she was 18 years old.
Gardner then reached out to the girl on his cell phone using the Kik messaging app, police said. He sent her intimate photos of himself and asked her for sexually explicit material of herself in return.
Police said when he asked her if she was underage, she told him she was 12. He then asked her how long she could sneak out of her home and meet up to have sex in his car.
The girl's mother found Garnder's profile on her daughter's cell phone shortly after and told him to stop messaging her or she'd call the police. She eventually called the police.
During their investigation, they found images and videos depicting the sexual exploitation of a child on the girl's phone. They were able to trace the material to Gardner.
The girl and her mother both later testified during trial about the trauma she experienced.
A sentencing date has been set for April 29.
“This was a challenging case that demonstrates the appalling ease with which common technology can be used to exploit children,” said Circuit Attorney Gabe Gore. “Knowing that a jury of 12 people and our prosecuting team believed her will be invaluable as she heals from her trauma.”
