OKLAHOMA CITY – LAWRENCE JUNIOR LOFTIS, 65, of Stephens County, was sentenced to serve life in federal prison for abusive sexual contact with a child under 12 years old, announced Robert J. Troester, United States Attorney for the Western District of Oklahoma.
“Sexual abuse of children will not be tolerated because it exploits the most vulnerable members of our society and inflicts devastating and long-lasting trauma to the lives of victims,” said U.S. Attorney Troester. “It is impossible to restore the innocence that was so callously stolen away from the child victim in this case. Our hope is that the life sentence of imprisonment for Mr. Loftis will bring some solace to the victim and the family because it ensures that he will never be able to abuse and exploit another child. I commend the FBI and Stephens County Sheriff’s Office who diligently investigated this case, the Stephens County District Attorney’s Office who provided valuable assistance, and the prosecutors who held this defendant accountable.”
“The FBI is dedicated to ensuring the safety and security of Oklahoma’s youth, and yesterday’s sentence sends a clear message that crimes against children, in both urban and rural Oklahoma, will never be tolerated” said Edward Gray, Special Agent in Charge of the FBI Oklahoma City Division. “I am proud of the diligent work of our agents and law enforcement partners to identify and investigate sexual perpetrators and bring them to justice so they can’t victimize anyone again.”
On April 20, 2021, a federal grand jury returned a three-count Indictment against Loftis, charging him with aggravated sexual abuse and abusive sexual contact with a child under 12 years old.
On August 13, 2021, after a four-day trial, a federal jury found Loftis guilty of abusive sexual contact with a child under 12 years old. Evidence at trial showed that, between early 2018 and late 2019, Loftis knowingly engaged in and caused sexual contact with a child, who was then eight to ten years old. The jury heard testimony from witnesses who had helped bring the sexual abuse to light, from the child victim, and from the Stephens County Sheriff’s Office investigator who interviewed Loftis. Finally, the jury heard the testimony of another victim who had been sexually abused by Loftis for many years when that person was a child. The jury did not reach a verdict on the two counts charging Loftis with aggravated sexual abuse of a child.
On March 7, 2022, Judge Wyrick sentenced Loftis to serve life in federal prison. In imposing the sentence, Judge Wyrick noted the nature and circumstances of Loftis’s sexual abuse, his history and characteristics, the need to adequately deter related conduct, and the need to protect the public from further crimes of Loftis. Loftis has been in custody since February 28, 2020.
Federal jurisdiction existed in this case because the crime was committed in Indian Country and Loftis was Native American. This was the first McGirt Indian Country case to go to trial in the Western District of Oklahoma.
This case is the result of an investigation by the Federal Bureau of Investigation’s Oklahoma City Field Office and the Stephens County Sheriff’s Office, with assistance from the Stephens County District Attorney’s Office. Assistant U.S. Attorneys Bow Bottomly and Brandon Hale are prosecuting the case.
