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A 54-year-old Red Lion, Pennsylvania man has been convicted on five felony charges, including attempted child trafficking and attempted rape of a child, following a sting operation in northeastern Pennsylvania.
According to the York Daily Record, a Pike County jury found Jayson William Miller guilty after a two-day trial. Miller had traveled from York County to Pike County with the intent of paying $200 for sexual contact with a 10-year-old girl. Detectives arrested him when he arrived at the predetermined location. He was carrying a bag of candy he reportedly intended to give the child.
The investigation began after Miller communicated with a woman about his desire to engage in sexual contact with a 10-year-old, according to local reporting. Detectives with the Pike County District Attorney's Criminal Investigation Division obtained that information and arranged the operation that led to his arrest in February 2025.
The jury convicted Miller on all five charges: criminal attempted trafficking in persons, criminal attempted rape of a child, criminal attempted patronizing a victim of sexual servitude, criminal attempted involuntary deviate sexual intercourse, and unlawful contact with a minor.
Pike County District Attorney Ray Tonkin praised his team after the verdict. "We are lucky to have such a dedicated team of detectives who work hard to investigate these cases that are the darkest area of human behavior," Tonkin said. "The fact that a person would pay to have sexual contact with a 10-year-old child is simply abhorrent, and we will prosecute these offenders to the fullest extent of the law."
Following the verdict, Miller's bail was revoked and he was returned to the Pike County Correctional Facility, where he had been held on $250,000 bail since his arrest.
The CSE Institute, a project of Villanova University School of Law that tracks commercial sexual exploitation cases, noted that Pennsylvania's human trafficking law — enacted in 2014 — applies not only to traffickers, but also to those who buy sex. The institute commended Pike County's use of the statute to target demand for child sex trafficking.
Before sentencing, Miller will undergo an assessment by the Sexual Offenders Assessment Board to determine whether he qualifies for designation as a sexually violent predator. He is scheduled to be sentenced at 11 a.m. on Friday (June 26) before Pike County President Judge Gregory H. Chelak.