Michigan man sentenced to prison for preying on 11-year-old girl in Houston

FOX 2 - A 59-year-old Michigan resident has been sentenced to nearly 22 years in federal prison following his conviction of coercion and enticement of a minor.

Raymond Dale Carr Jr. pleaded guilty on Jan. 27 and was sentenced to 262 months or 21 years in prison in Houston Friday.

Carr will also be on supervised release for 10 years following his sentence, during which he will have to comply with requirements restricting his access to children and the internet.

Carr will be ordered to register as a sex offender for preying on an 11-year-old girl, who he originally met online.

In imposing the sentence, the court considered victim impact statements and heard how the victim’s family has been forever changed, a release said. The victim has made several suicide attempts and she and her family are devastated, according to the arguments presented.

He cultivated a relationship with her and discussed traveling to Texas. Carr and the minor communicated via text message, social media and FaceTime video calls. In September 2020, Carr drove from Michigan to Texas and picked the minor up near her home.

Carr took her to a local motel where he had sexual relations with her. Investigators say Carr gave the minor a ring and suggested they were going to be married when she came of age.

The investigation revealed images of their hands wearing matching rings. 

Carr bragged to the victim that he told his children about her but not her age. He believed it might upset his daughter that the victim was younger than her.

Carr knew the victim was under the age of 18 and would not be of age for quite some time. Their communications referenced how much he loved her and how he imagined they had a future together.

Carr has been and will remain in custody pending transfer to a U.S. Bureau of Prisons to be determined in the near future.

FBI Houston conducted the investigation with the assistance of FBI-Detroit.