ST. LOUIS – A Chesterfield man was sentenced Wednesday to 15 years in federal prison for taking a 15-year-old from Kansas into Missouri to have sex with her.
Prosecutors with the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Eastern District of Missouri said John Low pleaded guilty at the start of Wednesday’s hearing to coercion and enticement of a minor, transportation of a minor across state lines with the intent of committing an illegal sex act, and travel with the intent to engage in illicit sexual conduct.
Low, 39, admitted in court to meeting the teen on the Omegle app and then using the Discord app to encourage her to leave her home and live with him.
Low drove to Riley County, Kansas, on Jan. 23, 2022, and picked up the girl near her home. He then brought her back to his apartment in Chesterfield. Earlier that day, Low quizzed the teen about how she would get out of the house without being seen, and then told her to erase her phone before leaving it behind.
The teen’s mother contacted local police. Riley County authorities and the FBI linked the teen to Low.
Chesterfield police and FBI agents went to Low’s residence and found the girl. Authorities also discovered Low had inappropriate sexual contact with the teen while she was at his apartment.
The girl’s mother spoke during the sentencing portion of Wednesday’s hearing.
“John Low has ruined our lives,” she said.
The mother told the court her daughter “was special, sweet, quiet and depressed, which allowed her to be coerced.”
“She cannot be a normal teen due to the trauma he caused to this child,” she said.
As part of his sentence, Low must forfeit his cell phones, tablet devices, a laptop, several hard drives, and electronic storage devices. He will be on lifetime parole when he gets out of prison.