{UAH} 'A wolf in sheep's clothing'; Va. missionary sentenced for sexually abusing Haitian boys
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'A wolf in sheep's clothing'; Va. missionary sentenced for sexually abusing Haitian boys
James Arbaugh admitted to "engaging in illicit sexual conduct" with 21 or more boys while traveling in Haiti as a Mennonite missionary (The Mennonite Abuse Prevention List)
STUARTS DRAFT, Va. (WSET) -- A Virginia man has been sentenced to 276 months in prison (23 years) for going to Haiti and engaging in 'illicit sexual conduct' with a minor.
"This kind of heinous and evil activity has no place here, abroad or in-transit," said Special Agent in Charge Lechleitner. "Those seeking to commit such abhorrent crimes and evade detection cannot hide from our highly skilled and dedicated investigators."
Virginia man sentenced to 23 years in prison for traveling to Haiti and engaging in illicit sexual conduct ice.gov/news/releases/…
The Justice Department announced that James Daniel Arbaugh, 40, of Stuarts Draft pleaded guilty to one count of traveling in foreign commerce from the United States to Haiti in or about 2016 to engage in illicit sexual conduct with a person under the age of 18 in February.
"James Arbaugh was a wolf in sheep's clothing: he posed as a selfless missionary when in reality he was exploiting his position to prey on and sexually abuse vulnerable children in one of the most impoverished areas of the world," said Assistant Attorney General Brian Benczkowski. "Today's sentencing is a testament to the unwavering commitment of our prosecutors and law enforcement partners to hold sexual predators like Arbaugh accountable for their deplorable crimes."
According to his guilty plea, Arbaugh lived in Haiti for approximately 15 years and traveled regularly back to the United States during that time.
While he was in Haiti, prosecutors said he traveled as a Mennonite missionary regularly visiting remote towns and villages, where he would befriend and groom children in these communities.
He admitted that in 2016, he engaged in illicit sexual contact with a minor under the age of 12 by touching the minor's genitals under the minor's clothing.
Court documents show that he had sex with at least 21 boys between the ages of five and 17.
This case was brought as part of Project Safe Childhood, a nationwide initiative to combat the growing epidemic of child sexual exploitation and abuse, launched in May 2006 by the Department of Justice.
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