PHOENIX, Ariz. – Andrew Lee Butler, 49, of Arkansas, was sentenced last week to 14 years in prison following his conviction on March 15, 2024, for Attempted Coercion and Enticement of a Minor and Interstate Travel to Meet a Minor for Sex.
Butler was apprehended on December 8, 2022, at Phoenix Sky Harbor International Airport. He had been engaging in daily communications over 38 days with an undercover FBI agent posing as a 13-year-old girl on a social media platform. Butler swiftly suggested having sexual relations with the girl and arranged to travel to Phoenix for a weekend in December 2022, believing her grandmother would be her caretaker while her mother was out of town. He also encouraged the girl to speak with a friend of his who he claimed had been sexually active with older men without being detected.
In preparation for the trip, Butler reserved a hotel room and a car, planning to pick up the girl after school. He also urged her to discuss getting the HPV vaccination with her mother, as parental approval was required for those under age 16.
The FBI has continued its pursuit of cases like this to work with the Arizona community to keep the safety.
