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Wisconsin man sentenced to 11 years in Texas child sex sting

The La Crosse Man plead guilty
Wisconsin man sentenced to 11 years in Texas child sex sting
Posted at 5:08 PM, Dec 07, 2017
and last updated 2017-12-07 18:08:04-05

HOUSTON (AP) -- Prosecutors say a Wisconsin man must serve 11 years in federal prison for traveling to Texas with the intention of having sex with a 4-year-old girl.

Benjamin David Sherwood of La Crosse, Wisconsin, was sentenced Thursday in Houston as part of an online sting. The 42-year-old Sherwood in August pleaded guilty to travel with intent to engage in illicit sexual conduct and also to enticement of a minor.

Authorities say Sherwood in 2015 thought he was chatting with a mother offering her then-2-year-old daughter for sex. The woman is in law enforcement and there's no child.

Prosecutors say Sherwood in May was arrested in Houston where he'd rented a hotel room and had child clothes and a stuffed animal in anticipation of sex with a preschooler.