A Starkville man pleaded guilty to one count of enticing a child for concealment in Lowndes County Circuit Court last week.
Eric Cannon, 21, was arrested in July for allegedly entering a home at a female juvenile’s request without the parents’ knowledge. He initially was charged with statutory rape, but the charge was retired based on his plea to the lesser charge.
Enticing a child for concealment in this case applies to Cannon attempting to enter a relationship with the juvenile victim without the parents’ knowledge.
The victim’s mother told prosecutors her teenage daughter had misrepresented her age and said she did not want Cannon to be charged with something that would result in him having to register as a sex offender, according to prosecutors. The juvenile was younger than 14 at the time of the incident.
Though sentenced to 10 years in the Mississippi Department of Corrections, eight years and three months were suspended. Cannon will spend 21 months in the Lowndes County Adult Detention Center.
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