New Bedford Man Sentenced in Pennsylvania for Sex Crimes

A New Bedford man has been sentenced to prison by a federal judge in Scranton, Pennsylvania.

The U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Middle District of Pennsylvania announced that Jason Monast, 37, was sentenced on July 28 to 25 years in prison followed by 10 years of supervised release. The sentence was handed down by U.S. District Court Judge Malachy E. Mannion. according to a media release from the Department of Justice.

According to U.S. Attorney David J. Freed, between March 1 and April 11 in 2019, as a registered sex offender, Monast used the internet to entice a minor to engage in sexual activity.

No other details were released.

The case was investigated by the Federal Bureau of Investigation and the Covington Township Police Department. Assistant U.S. Attorney Jenny P. Roberts prosecuted the case.

This case was brought as part of Project Safe Childhood, a nationwide initiative launched in May 2006 by the Department of Justice to combat the growing epidemic of child sexual exploitation and abuse. Led by the United States Attorneys' Offices and the Criminal Division's Child Exploitation and Obscenity Section, Project Safe Childhood marshals federal, state, and local resources to locate, apprehend, and prosecute individuals who sexually exploit children, and to identify and rescue victims.

For more information about Project Safe Childhood, please visit www.usdoj.gov/psc For more information about internet safety education, please visit www.usdoj.gov/psc and click on the tab "resources."