John Joseph McEnroe, 24, of Cape Coral, was sentenced to 10 years in prison followed by 5 years of probation for Traveling to Meet a Minor and Solicitation of a Child. He is also now a registered lifetime sexual offender.
McEnroe was arrested in June 2016 as part of Operation Cyber Guardian which was a joint undercover task force involving Homeland Security Investigations, the Cape Coral Police Department and the Lee County Sheriff’s Office to stop online sexual predators.
McEnroe engaged in sexually explicit text messages with someone he thought was a 13 year old girl but it was actually a law enforcement officer he was chatting with. McEnroe drove to a home in Cape Coral where he believed the girl was at alone. He was met by officers who arrested him. In the days leading up to meeting the girl, McEnroe had multiple online searches on his phone that involved rape and murder along with the address of the home where he thought the girl lived.
Assistant State Attorney Michael Colombo Jr. of our Special Victims Unit handled the prosecution. As the case was about to go to trial, McEnroe entered a plea straight to the court instead of facing a jury. The defendant had no previous criminal history.
Samantha Syoen
Communications Director
State Attorney’s Office
239-533-1125
ssyoen@sao20.org