A registered sex offender from North Texas must serve life in prison for molesting a 16-year-old Houston-area girl he met online and nicknamed "wifey."
Joshua Karr of Allen was convicted of sexual assault of a child and online solicitation of a minor.
Prosecutors in Collin County on Thursday announced the penalty for the 32-year-old Karr. He also pleaded guilty to possession of child pornography and attempted escape. Karr had previous convictions for possession of child porn and attempted aggravated kidnapping.
Skype logs indicated Karr groomed the victim by calling her "wifey" as they chatted online. Karr on Dec. 20, 2013, picked the girl up outside her school in Pasadena and took the teen to his mother's home in Allen, nearly 300 miles away.
Police rescued the girl two weeks later.
