Gwinnett Man Sentenced On Child Sex Charges

LAWRENCEVILLE, GA — A Lawrenceville man has been sentenced to 28 years in federal prison for going online to try to entice a child into having sex.

Leonard Nathaniel Peragine, Jr., 34, pleaded guilty in October to responding to an online ad that claimed to offer sexual access to a child and to possessing and distributing child pornography as part of his enticement efforts.

"Peragine intentionally searched online for sexual opportunities with children, and fortunately his efforts connected him to an undercover FBI agent instead," said U.S. Attorney John Horn. "Such conduct is as dehumanizing as it is dangerous. Sexual predators may feel the anonymity of the internet keeps them safe from detection, but this case shows that these predators will be found and prosecuted."

According to prosecutors, after responding to the ad, Peragine sent child pornography videos to the undercover agent that depicted adult men committing sex acts on prepubescent children.

He later spoke with who he thought to be the child and asked whether she had seen the videos and whether she wanted to try those activities with him. After the "child" said she might be interested, Peragine arranged to meet on September 29, 2015 in Suwanee.

When he showed up for the meeting, he was arrested and searched by FBI agents. Condoms were found in his car, as well as addition child pornography on his cellphone.

Follow-up investigation revealed other instances where Peragine sexually abuse girls aged 1, 6 and 8 and a 14-year-old boy, according to the U.S. Attorney's office.

Judge William S. Duffey, Jr. sentenced Peragine to 28 years, four months in prison, to be followed by a lifetime of supervised release. He still faces outstanding state charges of aggravated child molestation and other offenses in Lumpkin County.

This case was prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorney John S. Ghose.

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