Alabama man sentenced for traveling to have sex with young boys

An Attalla, Ala., man has been sentenced to 14 years in federal prison for traveling into Georgia to meet an undercover agent who said he had young boys available for sex, a news release from the U.S. Department of Justice states.

Joseph Franklin Ellis, 33, will have to serve 20 years on supervised release after his sentence.

In February 2011, an undercover officer placed a notice on a website that he had access to two minor boys. Ellis, who believed the officer had a 12-year-old and a 5-year-old boy he would make available for sex, made arrangements to meet at a Hampton Inn in Ringgold, Ga., for that purpose, the release states.

FBI agents attempted to arrest Ellis there, but he led police on a high-speed chase that ended when he crashed his car.

He pleaded guilty to attempting to have sex with minors and was convicted on Feb. 25.

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