Ex-Florida teacher convicted of child sex trafficking sentenced to 10 years

GAINESVILLE, Fla. — A former Florida teacher accused of purchasing sex with a 14-year-old girl via the now-shuttered website Backpage.com has been sentenced to 10 years in prison.

According to the Gainesville Sun, Jeffrey Farrell Davis, 36, who taught at Oak View Middle School in Alachua County from 2010 to 2015, was sentenced Monday after he pleaded guilty to a child sex trafficking charge in March 2018.

Several people "were involved in a scheme to make money" by trafficking the girl in north and central Florida from April to June 2017, the U.S. Attorney's Office said in a news release Tuesday.

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"Advertisements identifying the victim under a false name were posted in the 'escort services' section of Backpage.com for the Gainesville area," the news release said. "The advertisements were actually for the purpose of offering the child for commercial sexual activity."

Officials said Davis, of Gainesville, had "commercial sex" with the teen twice after responding to the Backpage.com ads. The girl also claimed that he filmed and took photos during their encounters, the Sun reported.

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Davis admitted to the sex but told authorities that he believed the girl was 19 based on what the ads said, investigators said.

Authorities originally charged Davis with using a minor to produce child pornography and child sex trafficking. The child porn charge was dropped as part of a plea deal, Reuters reported.

Davis' prison sentence will be followed by 25 years of supervised release, the U.S. Attorney's Office said. He also must pay $3,000 in victim restitution and $5,000 for a special assessment, authorities said.

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