45 years in prison for man who sexually exploited 13-year-old Missouri girl

A Colorado man who traveled to Missouri to have sex with a 13-year-old was sentenced Thursday to 45 years in federal prison.

Dominic Keith Pearson, 26, of Silverthorne, was sentenced in U.S. District Court where he pleaded guilty in October to charges of coercion and enticement of a minor, sexual exploitation, transporting a minor with the intent to have sex.

After the girl was reported missing from her Springfield home in January 2017, investigators found online messages indicating that Pearson was traveling to meet her, according to court documents.

A few days later they were found together at an Oak Grove truck stop.

The girl told investigators that she and Pearson had been communicating online for about two months.

She said that after he picked her up in Springfield, he bought her food and clothing and they had sex, according to the documents.

This story was originally published March 8, 2018 at 12:29 PM with the headline "45 years in prison for man who sexually exploited 13-year-old Missouri girl."