A 24-year-old Kalamazoo, Michigan, man faces at least a decade in federal prison after pleading guilty to attempting to lure an 11-year-old child into sexual acts, United States Attorney Gregory W. Kehoe announced Thursday. William Isaak Sparks admitted to targeting what he thought was a Florida child in an FBI online sting, only to be snared by an undercover agent.
Sparks’ plea, entered in federal court, carries a minimum 10-year sentence—potentially up to life—plus at least five years of supervised release and mandatory sex offender registration. He’ll also forfeit the cellphone used in the scheme. A sentencing date remains pending.
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Court records paint a chilling picture. An FBI agent, posing as the parent of an 11-year-old girl on a social media app, first connected with Sparks in a chat group. Sparks quickly offered to travel from Michigan to Florida to exploit the “child,” handing over his phone number and sending two videos of child sexual abuse to the agent. He even pitched sending an explicit clip of himself.
Text exchanges cemented his travel plans, and on May 21, 2024, Sparks resurfaced in a chat room, doubling down on his intent. He gave his real name to book a bus ticket—unaware the “parent” was an agent setting a trap.
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But Sparks’ plans unraveled days later. On May 24, 2024, Michigan State Police arrested him after a tipster reported he’d arrived at a Kalamazoo meetup with a condom and $45, expecting to abuse another purported 11-year-old. While jailed awaiting trial, authorities found him hoarding drawings of child sexual abuse in his cell, deepening the case against him.
Sparks’ failed Florida scheme marks another win for the initiative, but his chilling intent—from Michigan to the Sunshine State—leaves a reminder of the digital dangers lurking for kids.
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