SAN FRANCISCO – Roger Dale Boshers was sentenced today to 150 months in prison for coercing and enticing a minor to engage in sexual activity, announced United States Attorney David L. Anderson and U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement’s (ICE) Homeland Security Investigations (HSI) Special Agent in Charge Ryan L. Spradlin.  The sentence was handed down by the Honorable William H. Orrick, United States District Judge.

Boshers, 64, of Bethel Island, Calif., pleaded guilty to the charge on November 29, 2018.  According to the plea agreement, Boshers admitted that between April 6, 2018, and April 11, 2018, he exchanged messages online with a person he believed was a 14-year-old girl.  Boshers sent this person sexually explicit messages and a photograph of his genitals.  Ultimately, Boshers arranged to meet the purported 14-year-old girl on April 11, 2018, to engage in sexual activity.  When Boshers arrived at the prearranged meeting location, he was stopped by law enforcement officers and placed under arrest.  Boshers later discovered that the person he had exchanged messages with was in fact an undercover police officer.  

In addition, Boshers acknowledged that on October 19, 2017, he possessed multiple electronic devices, including three laptops and several hard drives, on which he stored images of females he believed to be under the age of eighteen engaged in sexually explicit conduct.  Boshers also admitted that as early as August 31, 2017, he used an internet-based messaging application to distribute at least three pictures of children engaged in sexually explicit activity.    

On May 31, 2018, a federal grand jury returned a three-count indictment charging Boshers with one count of distribution of child pornography, in violation of 18 U.S.C. § 2252(a)(2) and (b)(1); one count of possession of child pornography, in violation of 18 U.S.C. §§ 2252(a)(4)(B) and (b)(2); and one count of coercion and enticement of a minor to engage in sexual activity, in violation of 18 U.S.C. § 2422(b).  Boshers pleaded guilty to the coercion and enticement charge and the other two charges were dismissed.  As a condition of his plea agreement, Boshers was ordered to pay restitution to the victims identified in the child pornography counts.  

In addition to the prison term, Judge Orrick ordered that Boshers serve a life term of supervised release and to register as a sex offender.  Boshers has been in custody since his April 11, 2018, arrest and will begin serving his sentence immediately.

Assistant United States Attorney Sloan Heffron is prosecuting the case with the assistance of Kimberly Richardson.  This prosecution is the result of an investigation by Homeland Security Investigations, the San Francisco Police Department, the Contra Costa County District Attorney’s Office, the Contra Costa County Sheriff’s Office, and the Silicon Valley Internet Crimes Against Children Task Force. 

Members of the public who have information regarding suspected child predators or suspicious activity should contact HSI through the toll-free Tip Line at 1-866-DHS-2-ICE or by completing its online tip form at https://www.ice.gov/webform/hsi-tip-form.  Both are staffed around the clock by investigators.  Suspected child sexual exploitation or missing children may also be reported to the National Center for Missing & Exploited Children, an Operation Predator partner, via its toll-free 24-hour hotline, 1-800-THE-LOST.