Man Who Drove from Columbus to Toledo to Sexually Exploit a Child Sentenced to 14 Years in Prison

TOLEDO, Ohio - A 27-year-old man who drove from Columbus to Toledo to engage in the sexual exploitation of a child has been sentenced to federal prison.

Jermaine Taylor, Jr., of Grand Rapids, Michigan, has been sentenced to 168 months (14 years) in prison by U.S. District Judge James R. Knepp, after pleading guilty in October to Coercion and Enticement. He was also ordered to serve 20 years of supervised release after imprisonment and pay a $3,000 fine.

According to court documents, from about May 19 to June 6, 2025, Taylor communicated with an individual, namely, an undercover agent with a purported 9-year-old daughter, through a social media application. Throughout his communications, he expressed his interest in committing sexual acts with children and provided explicit examples of his desires. Taylor arranged to meet with the purported 9-year-old in Toledo and proceeded to drive there from Columbus where he was located at the time. Upon arrival at the pre-arranged location to sexually exploit the girl, he was promptly arrested by FBI agents and taken into custody.

This case was investigated by the FBI Toledo Resident Agency's Violent Crimes Against Children Taskforce.

The prosecution was led by Assistant United States Attorneys Sara Al-Sorghali and Alissa M. Sterling for the Northern District of Ohio.

This case was brought as part of Project Safe Childhood, a nationwide initiative to combat the growing epidemic of child sexual exploitation and abuse. The initiative is led by U.S. Attorneys' Offices throughout the country and 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, visit justice.gov/PSC.

To report child exploitation, please visit cybertipline.orgLinks 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., or call 1-800-843-5678, 24 hours a day, 7 days a week.