Students Involved in Sex Solicitation

By Broadside Editor-in-Chief Nicole Ocran

Two George Mason University students were arrested and charged with use of a communication system to solicit sex from a minor and carnal knowledge of a minor.

According to a Fairfax County Police Department news release dated April 17, Colin Fitzgerald, 25, was arrested on April 15 and Thomas Minnehan, 21, was arrested on March 30 for the above offenses.

Efforts were made to contact Fitzgerald and Minnehan via phone and e-mail, however, neither responded before deadline.

According to Chief Deputy Commonwealth’s Attorney Ian Roadway, the charges listed in the news release have not changed and the case is still pending while no court date has been set. The arrest records for both cases are unavailable to the public, according to Lucy Caldwell from the Fairfax County Police Department Public Information Office.

Under the Virginia Crime Code Listings, suspects could face two to 10 years in prison if found guilty of carnal knowledge with a 14-year-old minor and the use of a communication system to solicit sex from a minor by a person over the age of 18 is a Class 5 felony. Under this code, the jury or court may choose imprisonment for one to 10 years or jail for up to 12 months and a fine of up to $2,500, either or both, if suspects are found guilty of a Class 5 felony.

Detectives from the Child Exploitation, Sexual Predator Enforcement and Apprehension Detail and Juvenile Fugitive Sections have been conducting this investigation since December 2008 after a mother found an alleged request for sex on her 14-year-old son’s computer.

Broadside confirmed Fitzgerald and Minnehan’s current enrollment in the university with the Office of the Registrar. They are among five other Virginia men who have been arrested over the last four months after using a computer to solicit sex from a minor.

The charges against the following men were also listed in the news release:
John Fleck, 23, of 5478 Midship Court in Burke, was arrested on Jan. 9. He was charged with use of a communication system to solicit sex from a minor and indecent liberties with a minor.

Justin Ayers, 27, of 1127 Marion Ave., in McLean, was arrested on Feb. 2. He was charged with use of a communication system to solicit sex from a minor and attempted indecent liberties with a minor.

Broy Klein, 26, of 1673 Cedar Hollow Way in Reston, was arrested on March 6. He was charged with two counts of use of a communication system to solicit sex from a minor and carnal knowledge of a minor.

Eric Mintzer, 27, of 8016 Pohick Road in Springfield, was charged by the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the District of Columbia. He pleaded guilty to enticement of a minor on April 7 in Washington, D.C.

Broadside was unable to establish a separate connection between Fitzgerald and Minnehan, other than the two are Mason students.