Justin Towery - 5 year sentence and $50,000 fine - Internet Predator

A New Albany man Monday was sentenced to five years in the Mississippi Department of Corrections and was struck with a $50,000 fine after he pleaded guilty in Lowndes County Circuit Court to one count of exploitation of a child.

Justin Towery, 24, of 1023 Allred Drive in New Albany, was sentenced by 16th Circuit Judge Jim Kitchens after Towery admitted he attempted to sexually exploit someone he believed was a 14-year-old girl.

The charges came in May 2008, when a company named Perverted Justice contacted the Lowndes County Sheriff’s Department and set up a fake profile on the Internet.

A Perverted Justice employee posed as a 14-year-old girl and chatted with Towery several times. Soon after the chats began, Towery set up a meeting with the “girl” and requested they engage in sex and oral sex, according to court documents.

When Towery arrived at what he believed was the girl’s apartment, LCSD deputies arrested him on a charge of exploitation.

Towery received the minimum prison sentence for the charge, which carries a maximum sentence of 40 years. The minimum fine allowed for the charge is $10,000.

Towery also must serve five years of post-release supervision and register as a sex offender after his release from prison.

LEAVE KIDS ALONE