Source: Office of United States Attorneys
Jacksonville, Florida – Senior United States District Judge Timothy J. Corrigan has sentenced Amol Chandrashekhar Khedkar (59, Jacksonville) to 12 years and 6 months in federal prison for using his cellphone and the internet to attempt to entice an 11-year-old child to engage in sexual activity. Khedkar was also ordered to serve a 10-year term of supervised release and to register as a sex offender. Khedkar was working as an information technology architect for a financial institution when he was arrested on November 29, 2023, in St. Johns County. He has been detained since that time. Khedkar pleaded guilty on August 13, 2024.
According to court documents and evidence discussed in open court, on November 28, 2023, an undercover FBI agent (UC) in the Jacksonville area was conducting an online undercover operation to identify adults seeking to meet and engage in sexual activity with children. Posing as the parent of an 11-year-old child, the UC posted a notice in a public chat room of a particular online social messaging application (app). Minutes later, an individual using the app name “drbrownee,” who was subsequently identified as Khedkar, contacted the UC online by private message on the app. After being advised of the “child’s” age, Khedkar confirmed that he would “love to see [the ‘child’].” He asked the UC specific questions about access to the “child” and the “child’s” sexual experience, including “[d]oes she suck,” “[d]o you allow fondling?,” and “[w]hat do you charge?” Khedkar and the UC discussed meeting in person the next day at the “child’s” residence. Khedkar stated, “I’ll show up, … [t]hen you can invite me inside.”
On November 29, 2023, Khedkar and the UC exchanged text messages and arranged to meet at a location in St. Johns County. When Khedkar arrived at the location, he was arrested by FBI agents. During an interview with agents, Khedkar stated that his username was “drbrownee,” that he used his online account to communicate with the UC, and he had asked the UC about sexually abusing the “child.” Khedkar’s cellphone was seized incident to his arrest and a search of its contents revealed at least 25 online conversations between Khedkar and other individuals on the app discussing the sexual exploitation of children, as well as several photos depicting young children being sexually abused.
This case was investigated by the Federal Bureau of Investigation and the St. Johns County Sheriff’s Office. It was prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney D. Rodney Brown.
It is another case brought as part of Project Safe Childhood, a nationwide initiative launched in 2006 by the Department of Justice to combat the growing epidemic of child sexual exploitation and abuse. Led by the United States Attorneys’ Offices and the Criminal Division’s Child Exploitation and Obscenity Section, Project Safe Childhood marshals federal, state, and local resources to locate, apprehend, and prosecute individuals who sexually exploit children, and to identify and rescue child victims. For more information about Project Safe Childhood, please visit www.justice.gov/psc.