El Paso trucker who lured boys using flyers advertising free amusement park passes is sentenced to life in prison
EL PASO, Texas - Life in prison. That was the sentence for Travis Wayne Vavra, 60, a long-haul truck driver from El Paso who was found guilty of transporting children to engage in sexual activity. The U.S. Attorney's Office said, " Our office is committed to vigorously prosecuting cases against individuals who prey upon the most vulnerable among us – children."
The investigation was led by the FBI who worked jointly with members of the El Paso Crimes Against Children and Human Trafficking task force.
According to court documents, Vavra would post flyers offering free amusement park passes and cross-country trips for boys to explore the country. Between May 2015 and June 2019, he took a minor in his tractor-trailer from El Paso to different states, including New Mexico, Missouri, Arizona, California Wisconsin, Illinois, Nebraska, Maryland, Oklahoma, and Louisiana.
The trips began when the boy was nine years old. Vavra had previously molested two other victims, according to court records. He was arrested on December 6, 2019, and was found in possession of child sexual abuse material on his phone. He had also posted another flyer for parents and boys advertising free cross-country trips.
"From suspicious flyers posted in store windows to reports of sexual abuse, the investigation involving Vavra showed how concerned citizens came together to stop a predator from destroying the innocence of additional young boys and assist in providing closure to the victims of his previous sexual assaults,” said Jeffrey R. Downey, FBI El Paso Special Agent in Charge.
A federal jury found Vavra guilty of one count of transportation of minors with intent to engage in criminal sexual activity and one count of possession of a visual depiction involving the sexual exploitation of a minor on June 2021. Today he was sentenced to life in prison.
This case was part of Project Safe Childhood, a nationwide initiative launched in May 2006 to combat the growing number of child sexual exploitation and abuse cases in the country.
