LEXINGTON, Ky. - A Cynthiana man, who previously admitted to attempting to entice minors to permit him to engage in illicit sexual conduct, has been sentenced to 210 months in federal prison.           

Today, U.S. District Judge Gregory F. Van Tatenhove sentenced Jeremy Wayne Martinez, 28, for using the Internet, with his cellular telephone, to knowingly attempt to persuade, induce, entice, and coerce a minor, to engage in sexual activity.

According to the plea agreement, Martinez previously admitted to communicating with an undercover law enforcement agent, who responded to an ad Martinez had posted on Craigslist.com.  The undercover officer portrayed herself as the mother of two daughters, ages three and seven.  Martinez engaged in text conversations on Kik Messenger, during which he indicated his interest in engaging in sexual intercourse with both of the fictitious minors.  He traveled to a meeting place, in Frankfort, designated by the undercover officer, on October 19, 2017.  He was arrested at that time.  Martinez admitted that he was the person who had been communicating with the officer, and that those communications contained sexually explicit conversations.  

Martinez pleaded guilty to the charge in October of 2018.           

Under federal law, Martinez must serve 85 percent of his prison sentence and will be under the supervision of the U.S. Probation Office for 25 years, following his release from federal prison.

Robert M. Duncan, Jr., United States Attorney for the Eastern District of Kentucky; Richard F. Ferretti, Special Agent in Charge, Louisville Field Office, United States Secret Service, and Kentucky Attorney General Andy Beshear jointly announced the sentence.

The investigation was conducted by the United States Secret Service and the Cyber Crimes Branch of the Office of the Attorney General of Kentucky.  Assistant U.S. Attorney David A. Marye represented the federal government in the case.