Tammy Dickinson, United States Attorney for the Western District of Missouri, announced that a retired high school teacher living in Sedalia, Mo., pleaded guilty in federal court yesterday to arranging to meet a woman and her 14-year-old daughter (actually an undercover law enforcement officer) for illicit sexual activity.

Paul Robert Cannon, 71, of Sedalia, Mo., pleaded guilty before U.S. Magistrate Judge Matt J. Whitworth to attempting to induce a minor to engage in illicit sexual activity.

Cannon moved to Sedalia after retiring as a high school teacher. He never taught in Sedalia, according to Bob Satnan, Communications Director of the Sedalia 200 School District.

According to court documents, Cannon posted an advertisement on Craigslist on Jan. 18, 2016.

On Jan. 21, 2016, a detective with the Boone County, Mo., Sheriff’s Department responded to the Craigslist advertisement, portraying himself as a single mother with a 14-year-old daughter. Over the next six days, the detective exchanged numerous e-mails with Cannon. In these exchanges, Cannon described various sex acts he intended to perform with the minor daughter. He also offered to have sex with both the mother and minor daughter together and said he was looking for “a continuing relationship.” The detective also exchanged numerous texts with Cannon in which Cannon described various sex acts he intended to perform with the minor daughter.

The undercover detective arranged to meet Cannon at a Columbia, Mo., restaurant. Cannon offered to buy lunch for the mother and daughter before going to their residence for a sexual rendezvous. When Cannon arrived at the restaurant, he was redirected to another nearby restaurant, where he was arrested.

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