Austin 3D Gun Printing Advocate Accused of Sexual Assault Involving a Minor

Man at center of 3D-printed gun dispute charged with child sex assault

Cody Wilson, the man who rose to national prominence for his legal fight to post 3D-printed gun blueprints online, is now facing assault charges after allegedly having sex with an underage girl he met online, authorities said.

According to an arrest affidavit filed on Wednesday in Austin, Wilson was charged with sexual assault of a minor after Austin police received a tip on Aug. 22 from a girl that was under the age of 17 who said she had sex with the 30-year-old man for $500.

Court documents say Wilson's accuser told Child Protection Services that she created an online profile for the website, "sugardaddymeet.com" and exchanged several messages with someone with the screen name "Sanjuro." Eventually, "Sanjuro" revealed himself to be Wilson, who described himself to the girl as a "big deal."

The girl told detectives that after she researched him online, and exchanged several sexually explicit images with him, she agreed to meet him in person on Aug 15. That's when they had sex at a hotel, where Wilson gave her $500.

Police confirmed Wilson and the girl were at the location at that time after reviewing the hotel's surveillance footage, the affidavit said. 

Wilson, the founder of Defense Distributed, entered the national spotlight during a three-year battle with the federal government over his publishing blueprints for 3D-printed guns. Wilson sued the federal government in 2015 after they blocked him from distributing the plans from his website, saying authorities were violating his First Amendment free speech rights. 

The State Department ended its legal battle with Wilson after a settlement was reached with the company in June. 

A warrant for Wilson's arrest ordered that he be held on a $150,000 bond and for him to surrender his passport. 

Photo: Getty Images


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