MISSOULA – A 29-year-old California man who traveled to northwestern Montana and picked up a 12-year-old girl with whom he intended to have sex has been sentenced to 10 years in federal prison.
The U.S. Attorney’s Office announced Thursday that Edgard Enrique Le of Escondido, Calif., was sentenced on May 23 by U.S. District Judge Dana Christensen in Missoula. Le earlier pleaded guilty to transportation with intent to engage in criminal sexual activity.
Charging documents said Le engaged in an online relationship with the Evergreen girl and that they discussed being in love and getting married.
In February 2012, Le and another man drove to Montana and picked up the girl, prompting an Amber Alert. Officers stopped their rental car in Victorville, Calif.
Prosecutors say Le told investigators that he planned to have the girl live with him.