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Subscribe to RSSA former Peace Corps volunteer, who pleaded guilty to sexually abusing several children under the age of 6 while working at an AIDS center in South Africa, has been sentenced to 15 years in prison.
Jesse Osmun, 32, of Glen Street in Milford, was a volunteer at the Umvoti AIDS Center in Greytown, South Africa, where he worked in the preschool after becoming a Peace Corps volunteer in 2010, authorities said.
While volunteering at the preschool, Osmun sexually molested the girls -- who referred to him as "uncle" -- and gave them candy in exchange, according to documents.
“Instead of promoting peace and providing much needed assistance consistent with the mission of the Peace Corps, this volunteer took advantage of his position and sexually abused vulnerable young children at an AIDS center pre-school in South Africa,” U.S. Attorney David Fein said in a statement.
Osmun admitted that he engaged in acts with one of his victims twice per week for about five months.
'No refuge' for sex predators
After serving his sentence, Osmum will be subject to 10 years of supervised release.
The Umvoti center is a non-governmental organization that provides support for those affected by the AIDS virus.
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It also provides education, food and services for children between the ages of 3 and 15.
“As this sentence demonstrates, there will be no refuge for child sexual predators who believe that they can victimize children outside the United States,” Peter Vincent, director of Homeland Security Investigation’s Office of International Affairs, said.
“No place is too distant or too remote to escape the attention of HSI special agents, who conduct these types of investigations worldwide,” he added.
Osmun was arrested at his house on Aug. 4, 2011 and has been detained since.
In June, Osmun waived his right to indictment and pleaded guilty to one count of traveling from the United States to South Africa to engage in illicit sexual conduct with children and admitted that he sexually abused four minor girls while he was a volunteer with the United States Peace Corps.
Peace Corps set up victims' fund
Osmun resigned from the Peace Corps after being confronted by the Umvoti center's program director about the allegations and admitting to having a sexual attraction to children and engaging in sex acts with some minors.
The Peace Corps has said it was made aware of the allegations after Osmun resigned in May 2011. The agency has condemned Osmun's actions as "reprehensible" and agreed to contribute $20,000 to a fund for the victims.
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Peace Corps volunteers, who are provided with a living allowance and receive transition funds after they complete 27 months of service, provide hands-on assistance in areas including health education, information technology and environmental preservation.
The Peace Corps has sent more than 200,000 Americans to serve in 139 countries.
Osmun apologized in court to the victims, his family and the Peace Corps. He said he struggles with feelings of guilt and shame and acknowledged that his victims will live with the scars of abuse forever.
"I sometimes wish I could take my brain out and wash it of all the memories I have," Osmun said.
The Associated Press contributed to this report.
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How freaking horrific! Once again, someone in a position of trust and authority abusing their position. Not bad enough we have major child sex abuse issues in our country, now we have to start exporting it? for shame!!
so... Jerry Sandusky gets life in prison. But this guy, who was raping and molesting children under the age of 6 years old, only gets 10-15 years. So he will be out by the time he is 47... and he will STILL BE ATTRACTED TO LITTLE KIDS.
yet tattoos are apparently a red flag. way to go, peace corps.
peacecorpsjoey(dot)blogspot(dot)com
he wants to wash his brains of this act...why...so he can forget it because it pains him so much? this POS has no real remorse for his victims. but not to worry, he will have plenty of horizontal action when he is in prison once the other prisoners know what he did. something else is gonna happen to his brains there...heh, heh, heh.
No pun intended....
I think he should get life or Death because the children that he did this to has to live with what has happen to them all their life. It makes life harder for them to trust and have faith in them self with what he did. Maybe he should be put to death so that he cant do this to any one else.
I know about 4 ladies in the church who said they were abused when they were very young.One was a few months old .One was in Asia and prostituting herself to make money for her family. One was 11 years old and was abused by her father. 3 of them fell into drug use in their teenage years.Now all are saved and in the church praising The Lord and leading normal lives.But I should say that they all have one thing in common .They are very heavy set,like in an abnormal way. And I have a gift of Holy Spirit that let me recognize the spirit of lust still in them that was depositted in their souls by their perpetrators in their childhood. So they still have to deal with their heavy weights which causes health complications as if the abuse is still going on but in a different way.I also know 3 others who only came to church a few times ,all on drugs because they could not forgive their fathers. One died of drug overdose.Jesus said not to judge others because with the same spoon we feed others we will be fed.People who show their hate toward this criminal don't realize that in future they might have a son ,daughter ,niece, nephew,or even themselves to get this problem.It is starts by evil spirits that can vedge in the soul of the sinners.It starts with drinking ,then watching porn,then upgrading to child porn,and then practicing in real life.God forgives all sins. And if we forgive those who sin against us, then we have separated ourselves from their sins and God in turn can forgive us as it is in the Lord's prayer.Jesus said that we can only overcome evil with GOOD.
South Africa has one of the highest rape rates in the world. There is a pervasive superstition that having sex with a virgin( no matter how young) will protect or cure a man from AIDS. If this POS was tried in South Africa, there might not have even been a trial, never mind a conviction.
Never put small tooled white men around children. They can't satisfy a grown woman so they prey on children.
So what's stopping you??
reading some of the comments brings tears to my eyes...sad cases of pure hate...im not perfect, no where near, but this false sense of superiority is senseless and sad...i think if the parents of these children and Jessica's Ridgeway's parent could have a moment with any of us, they would tell us not to waste 1 minute of your life hating anyone, it's wasted moments that can never be redeemed, but instead use that energy to teach your children, neices, nephews, cousins, neighbors how to identify and report these crimes, so they will not spend months or years of torture...please people, we have to put these fruitless feelings of prejudice to rest, and use that same energy to help recover and find and save the thousands of losts children.
I also don't understand why he wasn't extradited to SA to be tried there. I'm sure his punishment would be more severe. Certainly the jails would be less pleasant.
thats nothing compare to the lady that 99 years for gluing her daughters hands.
On top of losing families to aids and being sick these kids now have the memories of being abused by those who were supposed to help them. these are kids! somebodies babies! these children are under 6 years old!!! and he only gets 15 years??????? he should be castrated with a rusty spoon, dipped in tar and left out in the south african sun bound and gagged. I pray for those poor kids who won't ever trust people again. I pray for their peace of mind and healing of their soul. wtf! g. zimmerman gets a "well we dont know for sure if the kid deserved to be murdured or not" but this known baby rapist gets 15?? my God, my God.
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