Amusement Park Employee Charged With Attempting To Entice A Child For Sex

Ocala, Florida – United States Attorney Maria Chapa Lopez announces the arrest and filing of a criminal complaint charging Frederick M. Pohl, Jr. (40, Clermont) with transferring obscene materials to a minor and attempting to entice a minor. If convicted, Pohl faces a maximum penalty of life in federal prison. He has been detained since his arrest on May 21, 2019.             

According to the complaint, Pohl engaged in a series of online chat communications to arrange a sexual encounter with an 8-year-old girl. Pohl believed he was chatting with the child and her father, but he was actually communicating with an undercover federal agent. Pohl sent explicit photos of himself and arranged to meet with the child at an Orlando hotel. When Pohl arrived at the hotel, he was arrested. Pohl was found to be in possession of condoms and a child-sized pink dress.

A criminal complaint is merely an allegation that a defendant has committed one or more violations of federal criminal law, and every defendant is presumed innocent unless, and until, proven guilty.

This case was investigated by Homeland Security Investigations. It will be prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney Michael P. Felicetta. Anyone with additional information should contact Homeland Security Investigations at 1-866-DHS-2ICE (347-2423).

This case was brought as part of Project Safe Childhood, a nationwide initiative launched in May 2006 by the Department of Justice to combat the growing epidemic of child sexual exploitation and abuse. Led by United States Attorneys’ Offices and the Criminal Division’s Child Exploitation and Obscenity Section (CEOS), Project Safe Childhood marshals federal, state, and local resources to locate, apprehend, and prosecute individuals who sexually exploit children, and to identify and rescue victims. For more information about Project Safe Childhood, please visit www.justice.gov/psc.