Man travels from Texas to Arizona to sexually abuse 12-year-old for hours, feds say
A 25-year-old man is going to prison after being accused of sexually abusing a 12-year-old girl he met playing a game online, federal officials said.
In 2024, Carl William Wyckoff, of Texas, met the girl living in Arizona online and spoke to her for four months, court documents said.
The girl initially told Wyckoff she was 20-years-old and when he learned of her real age, he stopped speaking to her, officials said.
He soon re-initiated contact with her and made plans to travel from Texas to Colorado City, Arizona, with the intent to see her, documents said.
He planned to fly to Las Vegas and rent a car to drive the rest of the way, but due to his expired license, he was unable to rent a car and instead paid an Uber driver $500 to take him to Colorado City, officials said.
He met with the girl and the two walked to a hotel a couple miles away in Hildale, Utah, where Wyckoff rented a room, documents said.
Over the course of 24 hours, Wyckoff sexually assaulted the girl eight times and asked to take photos of her, but she declined, officials said.
The two eventually parted ways, with Wyckoff going back to Texas and the girl going home, officials said.
He continued messaging the girl after they met, then she eventually disclosed the sexual abuse to her siblings, who told their parents, officials said. Her dad then went through her electronic devices, and as he was doing so, got a call from Wyckoff, authorities said.
The father answered, and during the call, Wyckoff admitted he sexually abused the girl, according to authorities.
McClatchy News reached out to Wyckoff’s lawyer April 23 and was awaiting a response.
In November 2024, Wyckoff pleaded guilty to transportation of a minor with intent to engage in criminal sexual activity, according to an April 22 news release by the U.S. Attorney’s Office.
He was sentenced to 11 years in prison and a lifetime of supervised release, prosecutors said.
Hildale is about a 160-mile drive northeast from Las Vegas.
This story was originally published April 23, 2025 at 5:53 PM with the headline "Man travels from Texas to Arizona to sexually abuse 12-year-old for hours, feds say."