Pennsylvania man sentenced for sex with Zionsville minor

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By Ann Marie Shambaugh

A Pennsylvania man who drove to Zionsville to have sex with a minor in 2015 has been sentenced to more than 19 years in prison.

U.S. District Judge Tanya Walton Pratt sentenced Sean A. Donnelly, 22, of Ephrata Penn., on June 15 after he pleaded guilty to enticing a minor to engage in illegal sexual activity and possession of child pornography.

Court records state that Donnelly met a 14-year-old girl from Zionsville in an Internet chat room in February 2015. Their text messages and phone calls became increasingly intimate, and Donnelly asked the victim to share naked pictures of herself, which she did.

Donnelly drove from Pennsylvania to Zionsville on July 2, 2015, and had sexual relations with the victim, according to court records. He returned a week later for the same purpose. Zionsville police found Donnelly and the victim in Turkeyfoot Park and took him into custody.

“Young people need to be so careful about social media,” Zionsville Police Dept. Chief Robert Knox said. “There are predators out there and this is that case in point. This bad person is going to be off the street, but there are plenty of others out there.”

Knox said he is grateful for help from the FBI, US Attorney’s Office, Boone County Prosecutors Office and Silvia’s Place Child Advocacy Center to help bring Donnelly to justice.

Prosecutors said that Donnelly must serve 20 years of supervised release after his prison term and pay a $5,000 fine.


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