Metamora Man Convicted of Attempted Sex Trafficking of a Minor

Dana Curtin, 49, of the 1100 block of Willow Lake Drive in Metamora, Illinois, was found guilty today of one count of attempted sex trafficking of a minor.

Over three days of trial before U.S. District Judge James E. Shadid, the United States presented evidence to establish that from March through May 2022, Curtin spoke with an individual he believed to be an adult offering sex with a minor and then traveled to meet the adult and child. Federal law enforcement agents arrested him when he arrived at the meeting location.

Sentencing for Curtin has been scheduled on October 18, 2023, at the U.S. Courthouse in Peoria, Illinois. At sentencing, Curtin faces statutory penalties of 15 years to life imprisonment, to be followed by five years to life of supervised release, and a possible fine of up to $250,000. He also must register as a sex offender. And the charge carries a mandatory special assessment of $5,000 under the Justice for Victims of Trafficking Act of 2015, unless Curtin is ruled indigent. Curtin is now in the custody of the U.S. Marshals Service.

The case investigation was conducted by the Federal Bureau of Investigation, Springfield Field Office, and the Illinois State Police. Assistant U.S. Attorneys Keith Hollingshead-Cook and Ronald L. Hanna represented the United States at trial.

The case against Curtin was brought as part of Project Safe Childhood, a nationwide initiative by the Department of Justice to combat the epidemic of child sexual exploitation and abuse. Led by U.S. Attorneys’ Offices and the Criminal Division’s Child Exploitation and Obscenity Section (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 www.projectsafechildhood.gov.