Registered sex offender just out of prison made plans to meet 14-year-old, CA cops say

A 46-year-old registered sex offender was arrested after being accused of sending “obscene material” and trying to pick up a 14-year-old in an online sting, California deputies said.

This month, San Bernardino County Sheriff’s Department took part in an undercover chat room operation, according to a news release.

James Wessley Rankin, of St. Louis, responded to an anonymous chat room website under the name “Lonely Nerd” and started a conversation with a detective pretending to be a 14-year-old, according to a Jan. 13 news release by the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Eastern District of Missouri.

Deputies said Rankin sent “obscene material and began making plans to pick the teen up from her home.”

Rankin was listed on Missouri’s sex offender registry after he was found guilty of first-degree statutory rape, according to the U.S. Attorney’s Office. He was sentenced to five years in prison in March 2021.

During his arrest, Rankin was living at a transition house in St. Louis and had recently been released from prison, officials said. He was allowed to go to work during the day.

The man was “actively engaged in an online conversation with the undercover detective” when he was arrested, deputies said.

“Rankin was arrested on multiple charges including sending harmful matter to seduce minors, online enticement and arranging to meet a minor for the purpose of committing a sex crime,” according to KTLA.

Anyone with information about the incident is asked to call 909-890-4904.

This story was originally published January 18, 2023 at 11:06 AM with the headline "Registered sex offender just out of prison made plans to meet 14-year-old, CA cops say."