Fernandina Beach man indicted for attempting to meet 11-year-old for sexual activity, DOJ says

FERNANDINA BEACH, Fla. — According to the Department of Justice, William Rand Paige, Jr. was using his phone and the internet to try to meet an 11-year-old for sexual activity.

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Paige could face a minimum mandatory sentence of 10 years to life in prison as well as a lifetime of supervised release.

He was arrested on Dec. 18 and on Dec. 21 he was arraigned in federal court and ordered detained pending trial.

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According to court documents, on Nov. 29, an undercover FBI agent in Jacksonville was conducting an online undercover operation to identify individuals who were seeking to meet and engage in sexual activity with children. Posing as a person with access to an 11-year-old child, the undercover agent was online in a particular online social messaging app and was contacted by an individual with the username “ah..904,” subsequently identified as Paige. Between November 29 and December 11, 2023, in a series of online conversations on the app and emails, Paige discussed his desire to meet the “child” for sexual activity. Paige also sent the undercover agent several videos depicting the sexual abuse of young children.

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On December 18, 2023, FBI agents executed a federal search warrant at Paige’s residence. On that same day, Paige was arrested.

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