photo by: Mugshot courtesy of the Kansas Sex Offender Registry

Kenneth McClelland is pictured with the Douglas County Judicial and Law Enforcement Center.

An Oskaloosa man was ordered to stand trial on Wednesday in Douglas County District Court after a 15-year-old girl testified that he contacted her on social media and asked her to be his “sugar baby” before he took her to a hotel in Lawrence to sexually assault her.

Kenneth John McClelland, 30, is charged with one felony count of aggravated human trafficking and one count of aggravated indecent liberties with a child. The charges are in connection with an alleged incident on May 10.

Judge Sally Pokorny ordered McClelland to trial after testimony from the alleged victim and three Lawrence police officers.

The girl testified that she had never met McClelland and that he began messaging her on Instagram with the username “Mark A20” on May 7. She said they had some mutual friends, and she thought he was someone she had known in the past when she lived in another state. She said his Instagram profile only had pictures of motorcycles and a dog.

She said they exchanged text messages on Instagram over a few days, and McClelland asked if she wanted to be his “SB.” She said she asked what “SB” meant, and McClelland clarified that he was looking for a “sugar baby” whom he could buy things for and pay for sex.

She said McClelland offered her $1,000 for intercourse and additionally offered to buy her a new iPhone and watch in exchange for a different kind of sex.

The girl said she told McClelland that she was “very young” and that he may not be interested in having sex with her, to which McClelland replied, “How young?” She said 15.

McClelland then asked to meet her. She said she agreed to the meeting in hopes that he would pay her but not follow through on the sexual suggestions.

“I had an Idea that he would try something, but I didn’t think he would act on it,” the girl said.

She said she gave McClelland the address of her friend’s house, where she was staying, and he came by to pick her up around 7:30 p.m. on May 10. She said she initially thought they would go back to McClelland’s house, but instead they went to the hotel.

Once they were in the hotel room, she became nervous and checked to see that there wasn’t anyone hiding in the room. She said she saw how nice the bathroom was and told McClelland that she needed a shower. As she showered, McClelland joined her, nude, and began groping her.

She then attempted to get dressed, she said, but McCelland carried her to the bed, where he “made” her “have sex” with him. She said she could have gotten away but was in shock.

About 20 minutes later, McClelland dropped her off at her friend’s house. Around 11 that night, McClelland blocked her on social media.

The next day the teen was driving with her father, and she told him what had happened. Her father immediately reported the incident to police and she went to the hospital for a sexual assault examination.

Multiple Lawrence police officers testified about how they identified McClelland based surveillance footage from the hotel and the girl’s description.

Officer Anthony Harvey Jr. said he got a call from the girl’s friend, whose house the girl had stayed at. Harvey said the 15-year-old had used the friend’s phone to contact McClelland on Instagram, and the friend then saw the messages and figured out what had happened.

Harvey reviewed the text exchange and saw messages from McClelland offering the girl money, he said.

Detective Evan Curtis testified that he retrieved surveillance footage and receipts from the hotel that showed McClelland renting a room. One video showed a vehicle that matched McClelland’s arrive and depart at the same time the girl said McClelland and she were at the hotel, he said.

Sgt. David Hogue arrested McClelland at his home in Oskaloosa. He said McClelland agreed to an interview and initially denied having been in Lawrence at all in May.

“Then we showed him the text messages,” Hogue said.

He said McClelland then changed his story and explained that the girl had contacted him by text message and asked him to rent her a hotel room so she could take a shower, which he did.

McClelland said that after the girl showered she wanted to reward his kindness with sex, Hogue testified. McClelland claimed he resisted that offer and took her back to her friend’s house.

McClelland also said that he did not personally operate the Instagram account that the girl had been communicating with, Hogue said. McClelland claimed that a friend of his in New York, “Davion,” was actually the one in charge of the account. McClelland said that he and Davion would call or text each other, and McClelland would tell Davion what to say.

McClelland is currently in custody on a $1 million bond. His attorney, Razmi Tahirkheli, asked the court to modify the bond to an own-recognizance bond, meaning McClelland would not need to pay any money to be released, but Pokorny denied the request.

She said McClelland was currently on probation for violating the terms of his sexual offender registration in Jefferson County — a violation stemming from a conviction of aggravated indecent liberties with a child.

“He is a threat to this community and the Jefferson County community,” Pokorny said.

Court records indicate that McClelland was convicted in 2014 in Jefferson County of one count of aggravated solicitation of a child under the age of 14. He was granted probation in that case and was ordered to register as a sex offender for life.

He was convicted in 2022 of two counts of violating the Kansas Offender Registration Act and was placed on probation for five years and is not allowed to have access to the internet, according to court records.