A 30-year-old man who created a fake online profile to inappropriately communicate with teenage girls was sentenced Monday to more than five years in prison.
Johnny James Watson of Vancouver previously pleaded guilty in Clark County Superior Court to sexual exploitation of a minor, second-degree possession of depictions of a minor engaged in sexually explicit conduct and first-degree unlawful possession of a firearm.
Watson used a fake name and birthdate to communicate with a 14-year-old girl on Facebook. He created a profile as 16-year-old “Dustin Webb” and began talking to the girl online and via text messages in November 2014, according to a probable cause affidavit filed in Superior Court.
He made statements to the girl about wanting to engage in sexual conduct with her. He also pressured her into sending explicit photos of herself, the affidavit said.
Police traced his computer to a Vancouver home, and an officer began an undercover chat with him.
Investigators served a search warrant at the home and contacted Watson there. He reportedly told police he created the fake Facebook page about two years prior to communicate with teenage girls. Watson also admitted to knowing the girl and her family, according to court documents.
Police additionally found numerous firearms in the home and a rifle in Watson’s room, court records said. Watson previously was convicted of second-degree assault and cannot own firearms.
On Monday, the prosecution said Watson’s actions were a “real betrayal” to the family he had befriended.
His court-appointed defense attorney, Charles Buckley, said Watson didn’t intend to hurt anyone and called his actions a mistake.
Judge Robert Lewis agreed to follow the attorneys’ previously agreed-upon sentencing recommendation of 65 months. Lewis also sentenced Watson to 36 months of community custody. He must register as a sex offender and is not to have contact with the victim.
