A Joliet, Illinois, man was sentenced on May 12 to 384 months in federal prison after pleading guilty to enticing a minor and committing a felony sex offense while registered as a sex offender. Martin T. Marling, age 41, will also serve a life term of supervised release and pay a $10,000 special assessment fee.
The sentencing highlights the severity with which the court treats crimes involving minors. According to evidence presented at the hearing before U.S. District Judge Sara Darrow, Marling engaged in sexually explicit conversations online with a child during spring 2025 and arranged for the child to travel to his home late at night for sexual activity. The child was found unharmed before reaching Marling’s residence. At that time, Marling was already on probation in Illinois for another sex offense and required to register as a sex offender.
Marling was arrested by authorities in Will County in April 2025 following an initial federal complaint and has remained detained since then. He was indicted the following month and pleaded guilty in November of that year.
“The U.S. Attorney’s Office in collaboration with our law enforcement partners once again removed a dangerous predator from the community,” said Acting U.S. Attorney Gregory M. Gilmore. “We will continue to hold any individuals who threaten our children accountable and prosecute them to the fullest.”
“Thirty-two years in a federal prison is exactly what a repeat predator deserves,” said FBI Springfield Field Office’s Special Agent in Charge, Ryan Presley. “Our agents and law enforcement partners do not wait around for tragedy to happen. Once notified, our team tracked this threat, moved aggressively, and secured an arrest before this man could meet with any children. We took a dangerous offender completely off the streets, and we will do the exact same thing to anyone else who attempts to target our children.” The statutory penalties include at least ten years up to life imprisonment for enticement of a minor; committing such offenses while registered as an offender adds another ten years consecutively.
The investigation involved cooperation between the Federal Bureau of Investigation’s Springfield Field Office, Galesburg Police Department, Will County Sheriff’s Office, Assistant U.S. Attorneys Amanda W. Searle and Jennifer L. Mathew prosecuted the case.
This prosecution is part of Project Safe Childhood—a nationwide initiative by the Department of Justice aimed at combating child sexual exploitation through coordinated efforts among agencies at all levels.
The U.S Attorney’s Office for the Central District of Illinois supports community safety through partnerships with law enforcement agencies across its jurisdiction; it prosecutes federal crimes within its area covering 46 counties according to its official website.
