The Department of Justice (DOJ) announced on Wednesday the conviction of a former electronics technician for the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) in Tennessee who federal officials said abused his position to “prey” on a 14-year-old girl.
A press release from the DOJ reveals a jury in Middle Tennessee former FBI employee Justin Carroll “guilty of sexual exploitation of a minor, coercion and enticement of a minor to engage in unlawful sexual activity, receipt of child pornography, and transfer of obscene material to an individual under the age of sixteen.”
The agency further reveals Carroll (pictured above) engaged in a relationship with a minor from June 2020 until April 2021, when he worked for the FBI.
Colleagues became concerned after Carroll’s victim sent a Valentine’s Day card to the FBI office where he worked. Before Carrol’s arrest, the DOJ previously revealed the victim’s mother also contacted Carroll to inform him of her daughter’s age and inquire about why he received the mail.
A press release published after Carroll was charged in 2021 further reveals that the FBI considered the package suspicious. When a bomb squad eventually opened the package, authorities discovered candles and a teddy bear sent to Carroll by the victim.
Carroll had provided the address for the FBI building to the minor as his personal mailing address.
That release further reveals Carroll met his victim “in an online chat room in the summer of 2020” and eventually spoke via video calls and the victim’s school email account.
“This individual abused his position of trust as an FBI technician to prey on the vulnerability of children,” said Homeland Security Investigations Special Agent in Charge Rana Saoud in a statement that described Carroll as a “dangerous predator” who targeted “innocent children.”
U.S. Attorney Henry Leventis highlighted the case as a reason parents must monitor how their children use technology, declaring that keeping “our children physically separated from strangers” is insufficient to provide for their safety.
“We must be vigilant in monitoring who they communicate with online to ensure their safety and to prevent the type of egregious conduct committed by the defendant in this case,” stated Levintis.
Carroll is scheduled to be sentenced on August 9. He faces a minimum of five years in prison up to a life sentence.
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Tom Pappert is the lead reporter for The Tennessee Star, and also reports for The Georgia Star News, The Virginia Star, and The Arizona Sun Times. Follow Tom on X/Twitter. Email tips to [email protected].
