A Missouri couple has been indicted by a federal grand jury for grooming a 13-year-old Virginia girl they met on Discord, picking her up from her home and then repeatedly sexually assaulting her.
Justin Johiah Curtright, 40, and Christin Marie Curtright, 32, a married couple met the victim on Discord and talked online and by phone for a month before they met her in person and took her with them to their apartment in Missouri.
The indictment charges: coercion and enticement of a minor, which carries a 10-year mandatory minimum prison sentence; conspiracy and transportation of a minor in interstate commerce to engage in criminal sexual activity, which also carries a mandatory 10-year minimum prison sentence; and three counts of sexual exploitation of a minor, which each carry 15-year mandatory minimum prison sentences.
If convicted, the Curtrights face a maximum punishment of life in prison.
According to court documents, in May 2024, the victim met Justin Curtright on Discord, an online group chat platform, where the two talked for hours.
The victim initially used an alias and claimed she was 18 years old. Justin Curtright soon began talking in sexual overtones and eventually sent the victim a sexually explicit video of himself.
Justin added the victim to a private Discord channel that included both him and his wife, Christin Curtright. From that point, the three talked extensively, both online and by phone.
The victim eventually admitted she was only 13 years old.
The Curtrights also engaged in sexually explicit acts on camera while video chatting with the victim.
At some point near the end of June, the Curtrights devised a plan to drive to Virginia to abduct the victim and take her to their Springfield apartment.
On the morning of July 24, 2024, the Curtrights met the victim near her home in Virginia. The victim got in the Curtrights’ vehicle, and they drove her back to Missouri.
During the trip, the Curtrights each took turns sexually assaulting the victim while the other drove. Once they reached their apartment, they continued their sexual abuse and exploitation of the victim for several more days.
On July 27, officers with the Springfield Police Department went to the Curtrights’ apartment where they found the victim hiding in the back of a closet in the Curtrights’ bedroom.
The victim had a debit card and false ID that Justin Curtright gave her which represented her as Justin’s 15-year-old daughter.
Springfield officers seized the Curtrights’ phones, which held recordings of the Curtrights’ video chats grooming and sexually exploiting the victim, as well as images of the victim being abused during the drive to Missouri.
Related stories: Discord
- Mark Warner pushes social platform Discord on failure to protect children, teens
- Intelligence document leak on Discord raises questions about gaming communities
- Parents, advocates headed to D.C. to encourage Congress to pass safety measures for kids online
- Member of online group 764 sentenced in federal child pornography case
Share
Crystal Graham
