A few weeks after being apprehended during a multi-day child sex sting operation in Marion County, a 59-year-old Ocala man has been arrested on an indictment charging him with attempted enticement of a minor.
On Friday, August 16, U.S. Attorney Roger B. Handberg announced that Scott Alan Colson has been arrested following the indictment, which alleges that Colson attempted to entice a 15-year-old girl to have sex.
Colson was indicted by a federal grand jury on Tuesday, August 6.
According to court records, on Wednesday, July 24, an undercover detective with the Marion County Sheriff’s Office posed as a 15-year-old girl on an online messaging application.
Colson allegedly contacted the undercover detective’s account and asked if the fictional 15-year-old girl had ever “been with older men.” The indictment alleges that Colson then asked to meet the girl in person.
While messaging the undercover detective’s account, Colson allegedly stated, “You keep secrets if we meet up.” He then proceeded to engage in a “sexually explicit conversation” with the undercover detective, and he allegedly requested that the fictional minor “make it easy to get down ur pantys.”
The next day, Colson and the undercover detective agreed to meet at a predetermined location in Marion County. Shortly after Colson arrived at that location, he was met by law enforcement officers and placed under arrest.
A cellphone belonging to Colson was examined, and investigators allegedly found “child sexual exploitation materials” on the device.
An indictment is merely a formal charge that a defendant has committed one or more violations of federal criminal law. Every defendant is presumed innocent unless, and until, proven guilty.
Colson is currently being held without bond at Marion County Jail. His trial is set to begin in October of 2024, and it will be overseen by U.S. District Judge Thomas Patrick Barber.
If convicted, Colson faces a minimum mandatory sentence of 10 years, up to life, in federal prison.
This case is being investigated by Homeland Security Investigations and the Marion County Sheriff’s Office. It is being prosecuted by Hannah Nowalk.
In addition, this case was brought as part of Project Safe Childhood, a nationwide initiative launched in May of 2006 by the Department of Justice to combat the growing epidemic of child sexual exploitation and abuse.