An Arkansas man has been sentenced to 14 years in prison after being convicted of attempting to coerce and entice a minor and traveling interstate to meet a minor for sex. The sentence came after Andrew Lee Butler, 49, was found guilty by a jury during a trial that concluded on March 15, 2024, and stems from an FBI sting operation, according to an official statement from the U.S. Attorney's Office, District of Arizona.
Butler was apprehended on December 8, 2022, at the Phoenix Sky Harbor International Airport. Believing he was communicating with a 13-year-old girl, Butler, instead had been daily chatting with an undercover FBI special agent for 38 days. In these exchanges, Butler was keen to arrange a weekend rendezvous in Phoenix, where he believed the girl was going to be under her grandmother's care with her mother out of town, the U.S. Attorney's Office described.
Evidence presented during the trial included Butler's planning and logistic arrangements. He had reserved a hotel room, a car, and was prepared to pick up the presumed minor after her school session. The prosecution detailed how Butler advised the girl to seek an HPV vaccination, which would require parental consent due to her being under 16. Furthermore, an analysis of Butler's phone showcased his prior internet search on statutory rape laws in Arizona.
Upon arrest, Butler was found with various items, including eight sex devices, an emergency contraceptive pill, and personal hygiene products in the color the girl purportedly preferred. Handling the prosecution for the Federal Bureau of Investigation were Assistant U.S. Attorneys Gayle Helart and Jennifer Corbet, as specified by the press release.
