A Virginia woman, Eleanor Hunton Hoppe, has been sentenced to 135 months in federal prison after pleading guilty to the distribution of child pornography and plotting to molest an eight-year-old girl. The sentencing, announced by U.S. Attorney Jeanine Pirro, marks the culmination of an investigation involving the FBI and the Metropolitan Police Department.
Hoppe, 46, of Charlottesville, accepted the terms of her plea agreement, which also mandates a supervised release for 10 years following her prison term. Moreover, she is required to register as a sex offender for no less than 25 years. Court documents revealed that Hoppe was ensnared by an undercover law enforcement officer on a social media site geared toward adults with a sexual interest in children. In this digital den of depravity, she not only shared illegal images but expressed intentions to engage in sexual acts with the officer's supposed child.
The sting operation culminated on March 16, 2023, when Hoppe was apprehended by the police after arranging to meet the undercover officer, who was to bring his daughter to a motel in Warrenton, Va. According to a Justice Department release, the arrest was part of a coordinated effort by the Metropolitan Police Department’s Youth and Family Services Division, Internet Crimes Against Children Unit, and the FBI’s Washington Field Office.
The case was put before U.S. District Judge Rudolph Contreras on April 24, 2024, where Hoppe entered her guilty plea. In statements released by the Justice Department, Assistant U.S. Attorneys Caroline Burrell and Rachel Forman, who prosecuted the case, highlighted the gravity of the crimes and the importance of safeguarding children from such predators.
