Two Yakima County men each sentenced in ‘Net Nanny’ cases prosecuted by AG’s office

After successful prosecutions by the Attorney General's Office, Yakima County juries convicted Frederick Thomson and Lucas Noe Martinez of two counts of attempted child rape. Martinez was sentenced to a range of 90 months to life in prison on March 25 and Thomson was sentenced to a range of 48 months to life in prison on Wednesday.

"We are committed to protecting the safety of Washingtonians and working with local law enforcement to keep families safe" said AG Nick Brown. "Successful convictions like this are possible because of the hard work of our attorneys and staff."

These cases resulted from a November 2019 "Net Nanny" operation in Yakima. The Washington State Patrol Missing and Exploited Children Task Force coordinated and led the operation, which was conducted by state, local and federal law enforcement officers. Detectives posed online as minors interested in sex, or, alternatively, as individuals offering minors for sex. The operation resulted in 16 arrests.

Yakima County Prosecutor Joe Brusic referred nine of these cases to the Attorney General's Office. The AG's office has secured convictions in eight of these cases, and one is still awaiting trial. The AG's office does not have authority to initiate such criminal prosecutions. Instead, county prosecutors or the governor can refer cases to the office as needed.

In 2019, Thomson and Martinez separately responded to Craigslist ads posted by a detective who posed as a mother offering her 11- and 13-year-old daughters for sex. Over text, both men arranged what they believed to be a meetup with the mother and her daughters and confirmed their intentions to commit child rape. When Thomson and Martinez arrived at the house at the arranged time, police officers arrested them.

Thomson was sentenced to 48 months to life in prison. This means that the earliest he would be considered for parole would be 48 months into his sentence. Mr. Thomson will be subject to lifetime registration as a sex offender.

Martinez was sentenced to 90 months to life in prison. This means that the earliest he would be considered for parole would be 90 months into his sentence. Mr. Martinez will be subject to lifetime registration as a sex offender.

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