This is an archived article that was published on sltrib.com in 2012, and information in the article may be outdated. It is provided only for personal research purposes and may not be reprinted.
A 77-year-old Salt Lake County man will serve at least 12 years in the Utah State Prison for arranging to pay a prostitute to have sex with her children.
Ray Alvin Stephenson, who pleaded guilty in 3rd District Court to two first-degree felony counts of criminal solicitation in October, was sentenced Monday to two consecutive terms of six years to life in prison by Judge Denise Lindberg. As part of a plea deal, four other counts of criminal solicitation were dismissed.
Stephenson began texting a woman in early June who was offering sex with her two female children, 9 and 11, for $100, according to charging documents.
He was arrested in July onboard a Nevada-bound bus. Stephenson had booked a hotel room in Las Vegas and was carrying luggage containing sex toys, petroleum jelly and $440 in cash.
The woman, who Stephenson believed to be a prostitute from Las Vegas, was actually an FBI agent who specializes in Internet crimes against children.
After his arrest in July, Stephenson admitted to police that he had made arrangements to have sex with the two children. He also admitted to having sex with another Las Vegas prostitute's children about 20 years ago. According to court documents, Stephenson said he "victimized the children … for a period of time until the prostitute moved from Las Vegas."
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