Miller Man Indicted for Attempted Sex Trafficking

United States Attorney Randolph J. Seiler announced that a Miller, South Dakota, man has been indicted by a federal grand jury for attempted Commercial Sex Trafficking of a Child and Attempted Enticement of a Minor Using the Internet.

Joseph Raleigh, age 34, was indicted on October 20, 2015.  He appeared before U.S. Magistrate Judge Mark Moreno on October 21, 2015, and pled not guilty to the Indictment.

The penalty upon conviction is a mandatory minimum of 10 years in custody up to a maximum of life in prison, up to a $250,000 fine, supervised release of not less than 5 years and up to life, and a $5,000 assessment to the Domestic Trafficking Fund.  Restitution may also be ordered.

The Indictment alleges that on October 16, 2015, in South Dakota, Raleigh did knowingly attempt to solicit a child to engage in a commercial sex act.  It is alleged he used the Internet to attempt to engage in the commercial sex act.

The charges are merely an accusation and Raleigh is presumed innocent until and unless proven guilty.

The investigation is being conducted by the South Dakota Division of Criminal Investigation, U.S. Marshals Service, South Dakota Internet Crimes Against Children Task Force, and the Pierre Police Department. Assistant U.S. Attorneys Kirk Albertson and Tim Maher are prosecuting the case.  

Raleigh was remanded to the custody of the U.S. Marshals Service pending trial.  A trial date has not been set.