Jacksonville Man Sentenced to 14 Years in Federal Prison for Attempting to Entice an 11-Year-Old Child to Engage in Sexual Activity

Jacksonville, Florida - Noel Daniel Simonca (48, Jacksonville) has been sentenced by United States District Judge Jordan Emery Pratt to 14 years in federal prison for using his cellphone and the internet to attempt to entice an 11-year-old child to engage in sexual activity. Simonca pleaded guilty on October 28, 2025. He was also ordered to serve a 10-year term of supervised release and register as a sex offender. U.S. Attorney Gregory W. Kehoe made the announcement.

According to court documents and information presented in open court, on December 10, 2024, an undercover FBI agent (UC) in Jacksonville was conducting an online undercover operation to identify adults who were seeking to contact and engage in sexual activity with children. Posing as a person with access to an 11-year-old child, UC posted a short message in a public chat room of a particular online social messaging app. A short time later, a person using the app name "mdesase" contacted UC using a text messaging feature of the app. App user "mdesase," subsequently identified as Simonca, confirmed that he would "love to see [the 11-year-old child]," and indicated that he had a sexual preference for children aged "8-13." On December 11, 2024, UC and app user "mdesase" discussed meeting to have a "play date" and to "trade [children]." Simonca sent UC two non-explicit photos of an actual minor child who has since been identified by the FBI.

During more text conversations, UC and Simonca discussed meeting in person. Simonca and UC discussed in detail the sexual abuse that Simonca planned to perpetrate against the 11-year-old "child." On January 10, 2025, Simonca texted that he was "available to help" teach the "child" about sex. The following week, Simonca texted that UC was "supposed to tell [the 11-year-old 'child'], so she can prepare, it's a photo shoot." On January 19, 2025, Simonca drove to a prearranged location in the Jacksonville area where he planned to meet UC and the "child." When he arrived, Simonca was arrested by FBI agents.

Further investigation also revealed that in December 2024, Simonca engaged in online conversation with another adult who was located outside of Florida and who had sent Simonca photos depicting the sexual abuse of an actual minor child. The FBI was able to identify and arrest this individual in February 2025.

This case was investigated by the Federal Bureau of Investigation. It was prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney D. Rodney Brown.

It is another case brought as part of Project Safe Childhood, a nationwide initiative launched in 2006 by the Department of Justice to combat the growing epidemic of child sexual exploitation and abuse. Led by the United States Attorneys' Offices and the Criminal Division's Child Exploitation and Obscenity Section, Project Safe Childhood marshals federal, state, and local investigative resources to locate, apprehend, and prosecute individuals who sexually exploit children, and to identify, rescue, and seek justice for child victims. For more information about Project Safe Childhood, please visit www.justice.gov/psc.