An Alabama man has been indicted in federal court, accused of transporting a minor across state lines to engage in criminal sexual activity.

A federal grand jury in Pecos returned the indictment on Friday.

According to court documents, Matthew Jacob Metzler, 32, traveled to Arizona to pick up a minor and then brought the child to Pecos where he allegedly engaged in sexual acts with the child.

Metzler is charged with one count of transportation of a minor in interstate commerce to engage in a criminal sexual activity. The defendant is scheduled for a detention hearing on February 16, 2022, before U.S. Magistrate Judge David B. Fannin of the U.S. District Court for the Western District of Texas. If convicted, he faces a mandatory minimum of 10 years and up to life in prison. A federal district court judge will determine any sentence after considering the U.S. Sentencing Guidelines and other statutory factors.

U.S. Attorney Ashley C. Hoff of the Western District of Texas and Homeland Security Investigations (HSI) Acting Special Agent in Charge Taekuk Cho made the announcement.

HSI, along with invaluable assistance from the Pecos Police Department and the Texas Department of Public Safety Criminal Investigations Division, is investigating the case.

Assistant U.S. Attorney Amy L. Greenbaum is prosecuting the case.

This case was brought as part of Project Safe Childhood, a nationwide initiative to combat the growing epidemic of child sexual exploitation and abuse launched in May 2006 by the Department of Justice. Led by U.S. Attorneys’ Offices and CEOS, Project Safe Childhood marshals federal, state and local resources to better locate, apprehend and prosecute individuals who exploit children via the Internet, as well as to identify and rescue victims. For more information about Project Safe Childhood, please visit www.justice.gov/psc.