Arizona man charged with attempting to lure minor who turned out to be undercover agent: Justice Department

PHOENIX – Federal justice officials in California say a grand jury has indicted a West Valley man for allegedly attempting to lure a minor online.

In a statement released Sept. 13, prosecutors said Anthony Dalton Wolff, 42, of Surprise, was charged with distributing a graphic depiction of a minor engaging in sexually explicit conduct, as well as attempted coercion and seduction.

“Between March 16, 2023, and July 30, 2024, Wolff met with and communicated with an undercover federal agent on a forum on the dark web dedicated to the discussion of child sexual abuse. The undercover agent had created a profile for a mother with a seven-year-old daughter,” part of the statement reads. “Wolff contacted the agent and immediately stated that he had a long-standing sexual interest in girls and hoped to have a sexual relationship with the agent and her alleged daughter.”

Officials said Wolff later moved his communications to Telegram, which they described as a “fully encrypted application that does not cooperate with law enforcement,” and he “frequently sent videos of himself watching and commenting on some of his favorite child abuse videos.”

“He planned to meet with the agent and her daughter in California and described in detail how he planned to sexually abuse the girl and have another child with the mother in order to sexually abuse that child,” the statement said.

According to the statement, federal agents served a search warrant for Wolff's home on August 28 and seized the devices allegedly used in connection with the incident.

“A federal judge in Phoenix, Arizona, ordered Wolff's detention because he poses a danger to the community. He will appear before a justice of the peace in Fresno once he arrives in the Eastern District of California,” prosecutors wrote.

If convicted of drug trafficking, Wolff faces five to twenty years in prison and a fine of up to $250,000, according to prosecutors. If convicted of attempted coercion, Wolff faces ten years to life in prison and a fine of up to $250,000.

“Law enforcement believes there may be additional victims in this case and urges anyone with information to contact the HSI Tip Line at 877-4-HSI-TIP or the CyberTipline on the National Center for Missing & Exploited Children (NCMEC) website,” prosecutors wrote.