Child Predator Sentenced to Life in Prison

TULSA, Okla. - A child predator was sentenced today to life in prison after attempting to meet a 14-year-old boy, announced U.S. Attorney Clint Johnson.

U.S. District Judge Sara E. Hill sentenced Jeffry Alan Clain, 59, for Attempted Coercion and Enticement of a Minor, Receipt and Distribution of Child Pornography, and Possession of Child Pornography in Indian Country. Judge Hill ordered Clain to serve life in prison, followed by lifetime supervised release. If released, Clain will also be required to register as a sex offender.

"Clain is every parent's worst nightmare. He not only tried to meet a child to engage in sex but also had hundreds of devices containing child sexual abuse material," said U.S. Attorney Clint Johnson. "This sentence sends a strong message to criminals looking to exploit children. We will be relentless and find anyone looking to harm our children."

"Our agents at HSI collaborate with our law enforcement partners daily to ensure those involved in predatory acts against children are brought to justice," said James Carmany Assistant Special Agent in Charge for the HSI Dallas - Oklahoma Division. "With the life sentence imposed on this defendant, it is assured that he will never harm an innocent child again."

In July 2024, Clain began communicating with someone he believed was a 14-year-old boy on a dating application. When the boy disclosed that he was only in the 9th grade, court records show that Clain said, "it's been years since I've dated a young guy like you." The conversations quickly turned sexual. Clain sent nude photos and detailed the sexual acts he would perform on the boy while bathing together. Clain then arranged to meet the 14-year-old at his home. When Clain arrived, agents took him into custody.

While speaking with agents, Clain admitted that he knew it was wrong to have sex with a minor. He told agents that they would find child pornography on his cellphone. Clain also admitted to agents that he previously engaged in sexual intercourse with a 14-year-old boy while he was an adult.

Agents obtained a search warrant for Clain's cellphones and home. During the search of his home, agents found more than 170 electronic devices, some of which contained multiple storage drives. In total, agents found the equivalent of more than 12,000 images depicting children, toddlers, and infants being sexually abused.

During the examination of the devices found in Clain's home, agents found images from 2016 with a different 14-year-old boy and their conversations over the years. In the conversation, Clain provides the 14-year-old with links to child sexual abuse material and explains how to find it on the internet. The images found showed Clain performing sexual acts on the 14-year-old boy. Agents were able to identify and locate the child victim. The victim, now 24 years old, identified himself in the photos.

Clain will remain in custody pending transfer to the U.S. Bureau of Prisons.

Assistant U.S. Attorney Mike Flesher prosecuted the case. Homeland Security Investigations and the Tulsa Police Department investigated this case as part of Operation Clean Sweep II. This operation partnered with the Tornado Alley Child Exploitation and Trafficking Task Force, which aims to hold child predators accountable throughout the Northern District of Oklahoma.

This case was brought as part of Project Safe Childhood, a nationwide initiative to combat the growing epidemic of child sexual exploitation and abuse launched in May 2006 by the Department of Justice. Led by U.S. Attorneys' Offices and CEOS, Project Safe Childhood marshals federal, state, and local resources to better locate, apprehend and prosecute individuals who exploit children via the Internet, as well as to identify and rescue victims. For more information about Project Safe Childhood, please visit Justice.gov/PSC.