Real Stories Project

03/19/10: Man, 22, meets 14 year old


Oregon LIve


A Portland man has pleaded guilty to federal charges of pursuing a 14-year-old Aloha girl on MySpace and enticing her into having sex with him.

Jover O. Mabaet, who is set to be sentenced on April 7, faces a mandatory minimum sentence of 10 years in prison, according to federal court papers.

Mabaet, 22, told authorities he met the girl in the summer of 2006 and kept in touch with her through the popular Web sites MySpace and Friendster, and by contacting her by cell phone and text messages.

In his written plea agreement, accepted Monday by U.S. District Judge Garr M. King, Mabaet admitted that he had intercourse with the girl and that he communicated with her through email to have a sexual relationship.

The case came to light on Nov. 30 when the girl's father found Mabaet and another man, a 21-year-old registered sex offender named Dennis Keomoungkhoune, in bed with his daughter, authorities said. The girl's father confronted the two and jotted down their names and contact information -- all phony, it turns out -- before running them off and phoning police.

Washington County authorities arrested Mabaet and Keomoungkhoune in January 2007, charging them with rape, burglary and using a child in display of sexually explicit conduct. Multnomah County charged Mabaet with other sex offenses. In June, Keomoungkhoune pleaded guilty to two counts of third-degree rape and one count of first-degree burglary. He was sentenced to more than two years in prison.

An agreement reached between the government, Mabaet's lawyer and county prosecutors will allow Mabaet to work off two shorter sex-related sentences in Multnomah and Washington counties while he serves his time in federal prison.

Assistant U.S. Attorney Greg Nyhus said he was pleased with the outcome and that federal prosecutors would aggressively pursue any adult who lures children into sex using the Internet. The case, he said, offers a cautionary tale for parents.

"Talk to your kids about their online activities," he said. "Know who their friends are and who they are talking with."