PEORIA, Ill. — A sex offender has been sentenced to 35 years in prison for enticing and sexually exploiting minor girls.
Charles Hewitt, 48, from Creve Coeur, admitted to creating a false identity on Skout and MeetMe.com in 2017.
Hewitt posed as a 15-year-old boy named “John” on the sites to receive naked pictures and sexual content from girls under the age of 18.
An investigation revealed Hewitt received explicit images from three girls and sexually assaulted two of them. According to the U.S. Attorney’s Office, he also threatened to find and kill the horses of a third girl if she didn’t agree to send more explicit photos or have sex with him.
At the time of the crimes, Hewitt was required to register as a sex offender after pleading guilty to aggravated criminal sexual abuse in Woodford County in 2014.
Hewitt was also ordered to pay $3,000 in restitution to each of the victims.
Hewitt will remain on supervised release for 10 years following release from prison.
