Man pleads guilty for failure to register
Published 1:11 am Friday, August 10, 2012
A Covington County man pled guilty Tuesday before a federal court for failing to register as a convicted sex offender.
Ricky Allen Baggett entered his plea to the felony chargebefore the U.S. District Court for the Middle District of Alabama, U.S. Attorney George L. Beck Jr., said.
A federal grand jury indicted Baggett in April for one count of failing to register and update a registration as required by the Sex Offender Registration and Notification Act after he traveled in interstate commerce in violation of federal law.
According to court documents, Baggett was convicted of one count of sexual battery and one count of attempted sexual battery in Florida in 1999. As a result, Baggett is required to register as a sex offender.
At his plea hearing, Baggett admitted that he last registered with the Covington County Sheriff’s Office on April 26, 2011. Baggett also admitted that after April 26, 2011, he traveled from Alabama to Florida and relocated to Florida. Baggett further admitted that, after relocating to Florida, he knowingly failed to update his Alabama sex offender registration.
Baggett’s sentencing hearing before Senior U.S. District W. Harold Albritton is to be scheduled. At sentencing, Baggett faces a maximum sentence of 10 years in prison, a $250,000 fine, and no less than five years of supervised release following his release from prison. Baggett remains in the custody of the United States Marshals Service pending sentencing.
This case was investigated jointly by the United States Marshals Service, the Andalusia Police Department and Covington County Sheriff’s Office.