School teacher tries arranging sex acts with 9-year-old in Florida, feds say

Miami Herald

2 days ago

A third grade teacher in the Tampa Bay area tried arranging sex acts with a 9-year-old girl while messaging someone he believed was their parent, according to federal prosecutors in Central Florida.
When Lee Hughes, 45, of Pinellas Park, went to an 'agreed-upon location' on May 1 to meet with the child for sex acts, he was instead arrested as part of an undercover sting operation, prosecutors said.
Hughes taught at Pinellas Preparatory Academy, WFLA-TV reported. The school announced on May 2 that Hughes was 'immediately terminated' in connection with his arrest.
Before he was taken into custody, Hughes had been communicating with an undercover officer since June 2024 and repeatedly shared his desire to sexually abuse the undercover officer's 'purported' 9-year-old daughter, according to federal court filings.
Now Hughes faces federal child exploitation charges.
A superseding indictment charges Hughes with attempted transmission of harmful material to a minor, attempted enticement or coercion of a minor and receipt and possession of child sexual abuse material, the U.S. Attorney's Office for the Middle District of Florida said in a June 9 news release.
Hughes' court-appointed federal public defender, Regine Soraya Lauren Etienne, didn't immediately return McClatchy News' request for comment June 10.
In a motion seeking Hughes' pretrial detention, prosecutors wrote 'Hughes is currently employed as a third-grade teacher, which is the same age of child as he was attempting to coerce and entice over the past ten months to engage in illicit sexual activity with him.'
On May 9, Hughes was ordered detained ahead of trial by U.S. Magistrate Judge Amanda Arnold Sansone, court records show.
While messaging the undercover officer, Hughes sent them about 10 sexually explicit photos and videos of himself and asked the officer to show the images to their decoy daughter, according to prosecutors.
In videos Hughes shared, prosecutors wrote in court documents that he was heard speaking with a noticeable British accent.
Though he now lives in Pinellas County, Hughes is initially from the United Kingdom, according to prosecutors.
'Hughes had ample opportunity to cease his communications with the undercover officer regarding his desired sexual abuse of a nine-year-old child; however, Hughes persisted,' court documents say.
On Hughes' cell phone, law enforcement discovered he had exchanged child sexual abuse material, according to prosecutors.
If Hughes is convicted of all charges, he would face a minimum sentence of 10 years in prison and up to life in prison, the U.S. Attorney's Office said.
Concerns or suspicions about child sexual exploitation can be reported to the National Center for Missing and Exploited Children's CyberTipline online or by calling 1-800-843-5678.