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Man used Snapchat, Grindr to solicit teens for sex at Virginia boarding school

Posted at 12:58 PM, Mar 17, 2022
and last updated 2022-03-17 12:58:26-04

ABINGDON, Va. – He used Snapchat and Grindr to communicate with students at Oak Hill Academy in Grayson County, Virginia.

In those communications, according to federal investigators, 53-year-old Jonathan Avery Shumate, of Warrensville, North Carolina, offered vapes to 16 and 17-year-old boys in exchange for sexually explicit pictures and videos.

"In addition to communicating online, Shumate traveled to Oak Hill Academy to deliver the vaping supplies, and also offered to provide oral sex for the juveniles while requesting that they perform oral sex for him," a spokesperson for the Department of Justice wrote in an email.

Shumate pleaded guilty to coercion and enticement of minors.

He faces a minimum of 10 years in prison when he is sentenced in June.

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