A Canadian man has been sentenced to 10 years in U.S. prison for attempting to coerce and entice a minor into sexual activity, following an undercover operation in Virginia.Tommy Varesh, 54, of Toronto, used an online discussion platform on May 9, 2025, to contact a person he believed was a 15-year-old girl in the Washington area. In reality, the individual was an undercover law enforcement officer. Varesh, claiming to be from New York, indicated he was willing to travel to meet the minor and asked whether she used birth control, offering to buy emergency contraception. He sent graphic sexual images of himself and repeatedly requested sexual images from the UC despite expressed reluctance.Varesh instructed the UC to keep their communications secret from adults, moved conversations to platforms that automatically deleted messages, and sent false statements claiming they would not engage in sexual activity.On June 16, 2025, Varesh traveled to Virginia intending to meet the UC. Authorities arrested him at the scene, finding black lingerie and emergency contraception in his possession.This prosecution was part of Project Safe Childhood, a nationwide initiative launched in 2006 by the U.S. Department of Justice to combat child sexual exploitation online. The program coordinates federal, state, and local resources to locate and prosecute offenders while rescuing victims.For more information on Project Safe Childhood, visit www.justice.gov/psc.
