Trending
The Maui News
A 47-year-old Maui man who had drugs in his truck when he tried to meet up for sex with someone he believed was a minor has been sentenced to 10 1/2 years in prison.
U.S. Chief District Judge Derrick Watson sentenced Lyle Cummings on Tuesday to prison as well as seven years of supervised release for child enticement and drug trafficking charges. A jury found Cummings guilty on all counts in June.
According to prosecutors, in March 2020, Cummings communicated online for days with a person he believed to be a 13-year-old girl but was actually an undercover law enforcement officer. During the conversation, Cummings attempted to get the minor to engage in sexual activity with him. He then drove his truck to meet her at an agreed-upon location in Kihei, where law enforcement arrested him. A search of his truck the next day found cocaine and crack packaged for sale, among other items.
"This trial revealed how predators like Cummings utilize social media to entice and exploit children, which is appropriately punishable by a mandatory sentence of ten years incarceration," U.S. Attorney Clare Connors said in a Department of Justice news release Thursday. "The fact Cummings possessed both cocaine and crack when he showed up to engage in sexual activity with a 13-year-old demonstrates the myriad dangers child victims face in these horrific situations."
Homeland Security Investigations conducted the investigation that resulted in the indictment. Assistant U.S. Attorneys Christine Olson and Rebecca Perlmutter prosecuted the case, which was brought as part of Project Safe Childhood, a nationwide initiative launched in May 2006 by the U.S. Department of Justice to combat child sexual exploitation and abuse.
"HSI special agents won't ever relent when it comes to protecting children and arresting individuals who prey on our most vulnerable," said Homeland Security Investigations Honolulu Special Agent in Charge John Tobon. "Child exploitation is one of the most serious crimes HSI investigates due to the lasting psychological and physical damage it can inflict on victims. We are proud to work closely with our law enforcement partners to make communities safer."
For more information about Project Safe Childhood, visit www.justice.gov/psc.