The Mercury News

Owner of 3D-printed gun company accused of sex with minor

-

DALLAS » The owner of a Texas company that makes untraceabl­e 3D-printed guns is wanted on an arrest warrant tied to an accusation that he had sex with an underage girl and paid her $500.

Austin police Cmdr. Troy Officer said Wednesday that the department is working with national and internatio­nal law enforcemen­t to locate Cody R. Wilson, who missed a scheduled flight back to the U.S. from Taiwan. Wilson didn’t reply to a phone message from The Associated Press seeking comment. Officer reported that Wilson’s last known location was in Taipei, Taiwan. He said it’s unclear why Wilson went to Taiwan, but he is known to travel extensivel­y. He said before Wilson flew there, a friend of the 16-year-old girl informed Wilson that police were investigat­ing the accusation that he had sex with the youth. In a court filing, Detective Shaun Donovan said Wilson had sex with the girl at an Austin hotel last month. A counselor for the teenager reported the accusation to Austin police a week later. He said Wilson met the girl through the website SugarDaddy­Meet. com, where she had created an online profile.

The girl reported she received images of Wilson’s genitalia and sent a picture of herself naked, according to the affidavit.

On Aug. 15, they met in the parking lot of an Austin coffee shop before they drove to the hotel. The girl told investigat­ors that Wilson paid her $500 after they had sex and then dropped her off at a Whataburge­r restaurant.

Wilson is identified in the affidavit as the owner of Austin-based Defense Distribute­d. After a federal court barred Wilson from posting the printable gun blueprints online for free last month, he announced he had begun selling them for any amount of money to U.S. customers through his website. The states sued to stop an agreement that the government reached with Defense Distribute­d, arguing that the blueprints for how to print plastic guns could be obtained by felons or terrorists.

Newspapers in English

Newspapers from United States