Man found guilty of trying lewd acts with a child
A jury found a high school teacher guilty of trying a lewd act on a 14-year-old child.
Wednesday a jury convicted Anthony Robert Korwin, 59, of an attempted lewd act on a 14-year-old child, meeting a minor for lewd purposes and communication with a minor to commit a sexual offense.
The case was prosecuted by Deputy District Attorney Kevin Cayton and investigated by the Internet Crimes Against Children Task Force. During the trial the jury heard evidence that from January 24 to June 5, 2017, Korwin communicated with a person he believed to be a 14-year-old child and discussed kissing the child, exposing himself to the child, having sexual intercourse with the child and taking photos of the child.
The Imperial County District Attorney’s Office said on June 5, 2017, Korwin drove from Riverside County to El Centro to meet with a person he believed to be the 14-year-old child. When he was arrested his digital devices were searched and one image of suspected child pornography was found along with several images of child erotica.
At the time of the alleged communication, Korwin was living in north San Diego County and teaching at Desert Mirage High School in Thermal, Calif.
District Attorney Gilbert G. Otero explained that, “The Internet Crimes Against Children Task Force allows us to collaborate with agents from the Department of Homeland Security and the Imperial County Probation Department to protect the most vulnerable members of our community. We have one attorney and one investigator assigned to work directly with the task force on child pornography and child sexual exploitation cases.”
Otero stated that in addition to investigating and prosecuting cases, the task force makes presentations to students, educators and parents on internet safety so that the public is aware of the dangers of online predators. The sentencing for Korwin is scheduled for March 7 at 8:30 am in Department One of the Imperial County Superior Court.
