Man Is Indicted in Internet Sex Case

An Oxnard man who was indicted for allegedly using the Internet to entice a Michigan minor across state lines for sex is set to appear at his extradition hearing today in U.S. District Court in San Diego.

Fernando Almazan-Tirado will request a continuance at the 2 p.m. hearing and most likely will not return to Grand Rapids, where he faces federal charges of interstate and foreign commerce, for two to three weeks, said Assistant U.S. Atty. Debra Torres-Reyes.

He faces a maximum sentence of 10 years in prison and a fine of $100,000 if convicted, Torres-Reyes said.

Authorities said Almazan-Tirado, 35, started a relationship with 16-year-old Holly Hansen of Grand Rapids over the Internet and in April traveled to that city to meet her.

He and the girl allegedly checked into a local Holiday Inn and had sex, officials said.

At the end of last month he mailed her an airline ticket to Los Angeles, said Dick Murray, assistant U.S. attorney in Grand Rapids, who will oversee the case there.

According to the indictment dated Aug. 13, Almazan-Tirado “knowingly persuaded, induced and enticed her to travel in interstate commerce from Kent County to Los Angeles County to engage in sexual activity.”

From Los Angeles, the pair traveled to Tijuana, where Almazan-Tirado “figured it was the only safe place” to have sex with Hansen, Murray said.

After a tip by Hansen’s mother, federal agents arrested Almazan-Tirado at a San Diego hotel on Aug. 11, officials said.

Hansen was sent back to her parents’ home in Grand Rapids.