A Franklin County man with a history of sex offenses and violence was sentenced to eight years behind bars yesterday. Leroy Richard Walker Jr., aged 54, found himself once again on the wrong side of the law, this time for possessing a firearm as a convicted felon, following a road rage incident, and for approaching children in violation of sex offender restrictions, according to a statement from the U.S. Attorney's Office, Eastern District of Missouri.
Walker entered a guilty plea in April after a November 2022 road rage shooting where he discharged a pistol because he believed another driver had cut him off on Interstate 44 in Eureka, Missouri. Moreover, Walker was investigated twice for contravening the restrictions placed on sex offenders, culminating in a troubling series of encounters with minors. In one instance, on Nov. 28, 2023, he initiated a conversation with two children waiting for a school bus, and then again on May 14, 2024, where he offered a ride to a 16-year-old girl, eventually putting his arm around her.
The victim, who remained unnamed, described feeling pressured into accepting the ride from Walker, fearing potential harm if she refused. "The victim told authorities that she got into Walker’s car because she felt pressured by him and believed he could grab or hurt her," as detailed by the U.S. Attorney's Office statement on the case. Walker’s prior convictions include first-degree assault, attempted forcible rape, armed criminal action among others, underscoring the threat he posed to public safety.
Walker’s sentencing in the U.S. District Court by Judge Matthew T. Schelp is part of a broader initiative called Project Safe Childhood – an effort spearheaded by the Department of Justice since May 2006 to clamp down on child exploitation and abuse. This case was jointly investigated by multiple law enforcement agencies such as the Franklin County Sheriff’s Office, the Pacific Police Department, and the Missouri State Highway Patrol Assistant U.S. Attorney Jillian Anderson prosecuted the case.
