Seven Men Get Harsh Sentences In Wichita Falls Sex Sting

     Camron Tavis Lynn was among the 10 men arrested in an online sex sting conducted in Wichita Falls, Texas, in 2017. Because he was 28 and had no criminal history, his guilty plea in 2019 earned him a merciful sentence of 10 years probation and a $1,000 fine with lifetime registration as a sex offender. He wasn't out for long, though. He decided it would be a good idea to watch pornography and a Midwestern State University computer to avoid probationary measures aimed at preventing him from viewing porn at home, and, in December 2020, he was sentenced to 4.5 years in prison. He is set to be released in early 2025. 

     Blake Lee Pendley hooked up with a "15-year-old girl," actually a detective from the WFPD, on Craigslist and borrowed his grandmother's truck to drive to meet her, asking the arresting officer if he was a cop. Another 28-year-old, a boyfriend and a new father got a harsher sentence for his crime when he decided to wait until January 2020 to plead guilty: five years in prison with lifetime registration as a sex offender. This may be because he admitted to regularly smoking meth and because he cried about the consequences he would face, not the damage he could have done to a child, while trying to pull the church card. He remains behind bars, and his grandmother will not likely make him brownies any time soon.

     Marcos Magdeleno Rodriguez had a prior offense for sexual indecency with a child stemming back to 2014. When he was arrested in 2017, therefore, the judge was in no mood for leniency for the repeat offender. A crime that usually nets sentences ranging from two to 10 years could have put the 39-year-old in prison for more than 20 years, so he decided to plead guilty in 2018 and was sentenced to 13 years in prison. He remains incarcerated; should he reoffend when released, he will be eligible for a mandatory life sentence.

     Joshua Tyler Arismendez, 33, was sentenced to five years in prison for his crime in 2019, given credit for two days served, and released in January 2021. He must register as a sex offender for life in his hometown of Goree, Texas. 

     Rowdy Otto Raschke remained quiet as he was sentenced to five years in prison in December 2019 for the crime of online solicitation of a child for sex. He may celebrate his 30th birthday incarcerated, but will be eligible to be released to his home in Iowa Park as a registered sex offender early next year.

     Edward Louis Lawrence was also of Iowa Park, but his story went much differently. This 72-year-old freak was sentenced to 18 years in prison with lifetime RSO status. I am not sure why he received the harshest sentence in the investigation; even though his age and potential other charges stemming from his chat may be reason for a harsher sentence, I found no evidence of a prior conviction that would have warranted going beyond the decade mark I won't shed a tear for old Eddy either way. Because of his age and lengthy prison term, I doubt he will ever see the light of day again.

     Leland Girard Baldwin, pictured above, is 58, and he may be eligible for Social Security when he gets out of prison. Not faring much better than Lawrence, he was sentenced to 15 years in prison in August 2018 along with lifetime sex offender registration. If he serves at least a majority of his term, his chances of getting out and going home to Wichita Falls ever are about 50-50.

     Matthew Aaron Lopez was 18 when he was arrested for online solicitation of a minor in 2017. In 2019, he pleaded guilty to a misdemeanor of soliciting prostitution, received credit for time served in jail (eight days), and was fined $1,000. He still lives in Wichita Falls, and this offense is not a very promising start to Lopez's life, to say the least.

     Two men, 29-year-old Gregory Deshawn Mayo, of Iowa Park, and 42-year-old Brian Deon Kornegay, of Wichita Falls, have been indicted and are working their way through the legal system. A message for these two men: it doesn't look good for you. You're not teenagers like Mr. Lopez, and all the other men are now convicted felons serving an average sentence 9.5 years in prison with lifetime sex offender registration to look forward to.

     Thanks to the Wichita Falls Police Department and Trish Choate of the Wichita Falls Times News Record for investigating and covering this case, respectively.