BRYAN, Texas — On Friday, Aug. 11, a Leander man was sentenced to six years in prison by a Brazos County Judge for soliciting minors for sex online.
Arnold Elkins, 58, was convicted that same day for his actions in September 2018. At the time, Elkins had been chatting with an individual online who he thought was a 15-year-old girl. Little did Elkins know that he was actually talking with an investigator with the Office of the Attorney General, who was doing a proactive investigation online.
According to a release from the Brazos County District Attorney's Office, the investigator posing as the girl agreed to meet up with him on Sept. 13, 2018 after just two days of talking. During those two days, the DA says "the conversation quickly turned into a sexual nature."
Elkins later travelled to Bryan, and agreed to meet the person he thought was a 15-year-old girl at a motel, but was met by investigators instead and taken into custody.
According to the DA, Elkins will be required to register as a sex offender as a part of his sentence.
"The defendant made plans to prey on children in Brazos County. Thanks to the proactive work of investigators with the Attorney General's Office, he was stopped before he ever had the chance," Assistant District Attorneys Kara Comte and Brian Price said in a release about the sentencing.
Online Solicitation of a Minor is a third degree felony, and can come with a jail sentence ranging from two to 10 years in prison.
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