Tallahassee Man Pleads Guilty to Attempted Enticement of a Minor

Tallahassee, Florida - Jarrod Gordon Eldridge, 31, of Tallahassee, Florida, pleaded guilty in federal court to one count of attempted enticement of a minor. The plea was announced by John P. Heekin, United States Attorney for the Northern District of Florida.

U.S. Attorney Heekin said: "This successful prosecution by my office was made possible thanks to the excellent investigative work by our state and federal law enforcement partners. Keeping our kids safe online and in our communities remains a top priority for my office, and we will continue to aggressively prosecute anyone who attempts to sexually exploit or victimize a child online."

Court documents reflect that in February 2024, the defendant communicated online with an individual he believed to be a parent of a minor, but was actually an undercover law enforcement officer. Through the online communications, the defendant negotiated to perform sexual acts upon the child, and subsequently directly engaged in sexually explicit conversation with another undercover officer posing as the child.

Eldridge faces a mandatory minimum of 10 years' imprisonment and up to life in prison for attempted enticement of a minor. He also faces up to a lifetime of supervision upon release.

Sentencing is scheduled for January 14, 2027, at the United States Courthouse in Tallahassee, Florida before United States District Judge Mark E. Walker.

The case was investigated by the Leon County Sheriff's Office and the Federal Bureau of Investigation. Assistant United States Attorney Joseph A. Ravelo is prosecuting the case.

This case was brought as part of Project Safe Childhood, a nationwide initiative to combat the growing epidemic of child sexual exploitation and abuse launched in May 2006 by the Department of Justice. Led by U.S. Attorneys' Offices and CEOS, Project Safe Childhood marshals federal, state, and local resources to better locate, apprehend and prosecute individuals who exploit children via the Internet, as well as to identify and rescue victims. For more information about Project Safe Childhood, please visit Justice.gov/PSC.

The United States Attorney's Office for the Northern District of Florida is one of 94 offices that serve as the nation's principal litigators under the direction of the Attorney General. To access public court documents online, please visit the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of FloridaLinks to other government and non-government sites will typically appear with the "external link" icon to indicate that you are leaving the Department of Justice website when you click the link. website. For more information about the United States Attorney's Office for the Northern District of Florida, visit https://www.justice.gov/usao-ndfl.