CHARLESTON, W.Va. (AP) — A man accused of sexually assaulting an 11-year-old girl in a West Virginia Target store pleaded guilty Tuesday to federal charges in two states.
Allen Dwayne Coates, 38, of Irvington, Ky., faces up to life in prison for crossing state lines with the intent to engage in a sexual act with a person under 12.
A surveillance camera showed Coates stalking the girl and leading her down an aisle by her wrist before the alleged July assault. Federal prosecutors said Coates told the girl he was a security guard and that he suspected her of shoplifting.
He allegedly gave a similar story to a 9-year-old girl at a Wal-Mart in Ashland, Ky., a day earlier. That girl fled and was unharmed.
Coates also pleaded guilty to possession of child pornography, a charge filed in Kentucky. That case was consolidated with the one in West Virginia.