SPOKANE, Wash. — 49-year-old Koby Don Williams, a former Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) officer from Ellensburg was sentenced to over 11 years in federal prison after being convicted of attempting to buy sex from a minor.
Williams was convicted in May of 2024 after being caught in a set-up to catch people trying to meet minors for sex in July of 2022.
According to court documents and information disclosed at the trial and sentencing, Williams replied to a decoy Craigslist post that was part of an undercover law enforcement operation meant to identify individuals interested in and willing to meet with minors for sex.
The post indicated that “Rebecca” was a 13-year-old prostitute. Over the next three days, Williams called and chatted over text with “Rebecca,” who Williams believed to be a minor. During the conversations, Williams discussed “Rebecca’s” age, that Williams would pay for sex acts, Williams’s employment as a “cop” and arrangements to meet “Rebecca” at a hotel for sex.
On July 26, 2022, Williams arrived at a hotel in Othello, Washington, to meet “Rebecca.” He was met by law enforcement and arrested.
Following a search of Williams and his vehicle, officers located Williams’ ICE badge, two bottles of generic Viagra and $4,075 in cash in an envelope.
Williams testified that he did not believe “Rebecca” was a minor and that he was there to rescue a minor. Williams was found guilty by a jury and convicted on May 14, 2024.
“Mr. Williams held a duty of trust within the Eastern Washington law enforcement community, and he breached that trust by seeking out what he thought was a child for sex. He then attempted to use his position as a law enforcement officer to explain away his conduct,” said U.S. Attorney Vanessa R. Waldref. “Thanks to the excellent investigative work by local and federal law enforcement, and by Assistant United States Attorney Ann Wick, who secured the guilty verdict at trial, Mr. Williams is now being held accountable.”
The case was brought to court as a part of Project Safe Childhood, a nationwide initiative to combat child sexual exploitation and abuse launched in May 2006 by the Department of Justice.
Project Safe Childhood uses federal, state and local resources to locate, apprehend and prosecute individuals who exploit children online, as well as to identify and rescue victims.
“Mr. Williams knew exactly what he was doing as he attempted to meet a minor for sex.” said Richard A. Collodi, Special Agent in Charge of the FBI’s Seattle field office. “What makes this even more despicable is that he was a member of law enforcement, entrusted with protecting the public. Mr. Williams’ actions both endangered our community’s most vulnerable and betrayed the trust endowed to our public safety professionals. Safeguarding children is not only a priority for the FBI but is also one of the more noble tasks we perform.”
The FBI worked with local police departments in Othello, Moses Lake and Toppenish to investigate this case.
“Sexual exploitation of children, human sex trafficking of children, and internet crimes against children often go unnoticed. It is deeply concerning when a member of law enforcement is involved in committing these horrific acts,” said Othello Police Detective Sergeant Brent McFarlane. “Sadly, the online world provides criminals with easy access to children. This stark reality underscores the need for proactive and coordinated investigations. This case demonstrates the collaboration between federal and state partners to protect the most vulnerable and hold perpetrators accountable.”
