U.S. District Judge Mary S. Scriven has sentenced Buddy Allen Travis, a 42-year-old resident of Bradenton, to 15 years and 8 months in federal prison. This will be followed by a lifetime of supervised release for the production and receipt of child sexual abuse material. Travis entered a guilty plea on October 1, 2024.
Court documents reveal that Travis used Facebook to persuade a 14-year-old minor to engage in sexual activity with him. He engaged in explicit conversations with the minor and requested sexually explicit images from her. Additionally, he sent obscene images of himself to the victim.
The Federal Bureau of Investigation conducted the investigation into this case, which was prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney Courtney Derry.
This prosecution is part of Project Safe Childhood, an initiative launched in May 2006 by the Department of Justice. The project aims to combat child sexual exploitation and abuse through coordinated efforts by federal, state, and local agencies. It focuses on locating and prosecuting offenders while identifying and rescuing victims. More information about Project Safe Childhood can be found at www.projectsafechildhood.gov.