Estimated read time: 2-3 minutes
- An Army sergeant is facing faces 31 felonies accusing him of an inappropriate online relationship with a 15-year-old Utah girl.
- Charges include sexual exploitation, enticing a minor, and dealing in harmful materials.
- The investigation revealed a pattern of grooming, according to the charges.
BEAVER — A 27-year-old U.S. Army sergeant is facing 31 felony charges accusing him of engaging in an inappropriate online relationship with a 15-year-old Utah girl.
Tomas Richard Shipman, who has ties to Missouri and Colorado and is currently stationed in Tacoma, Washington, according to court records, was charged Thursday in 5th District Court with 20 counts of sexual exploitation of a minor, a second-degree felony; enticing a minor and 10 counts of dealing in harmful materials to a minor, third-degree felonies.
A 15-year-old girl from Beaver County met Shipman online in July 2024 and the two "have been in communication almost every day since then," according to charging documents. During the investigation, detectives reviewed numerous messages on several apps the girl and Shipman used to communicate with each other over the months.
"They both give written expressions of intimacy toward each other and express terms of endearment. This conversation appears to have occurred days/weeks leading up to March 23, which was the date of the reporting by the parents," charging documents state. "(The girl) appears to be very infatuated with Shipman and notes that she sincerely loves him and doesn't want him to get into trouble. She even stated that she doesn't feel like she was 'ever harmed by him.'"
But in addition to expressing terms of endearment, investigators outlined in a 22-page affidavit sexually explicit conversations Shipman engaged in with the teen, as well as inappropriate pictures he sent her, the charges state.
"After this thorough search through the records, there appears to be a pattern of grooming being performed by the suspect," prosecutors wrote. "It is evident that the suspect has made the victim feel as if she is dependent upon him, as well as the suspect making statements that he is dependent upon her."
Investigators say "one of the most alarming conversations" the two had was in March when Shipman told the girl, "I kinda really want to get you pregnant this summer," according to charging documents.
Shipman and the girl also talk about getting married, the charges state, even though conversations between the two show that Shipman knew the girl was 15.
After the girl's parents discovered what was happening and went to police on March 23, communication with Shipman was cut off. But he allegedly continued to send her messages, including some related to her school activity and attendance.
"It appears that the suspect is still trying to establish contact and has begun exhibiting more stalking-like behavior because he has not had any recent contact with her," the charges state.
