An ex-Santa Claus and former children's entertainer, Wayne Nelson Corliss, has been charged with distribution of child pornography and traveling to Asia for sex with boys.
Wayne Nelson Corliss, a former Santa Claus and an ex-children’s entertainer in New Jersey, pleaded guilty and was sentenced to nearly twenty years in prison on Monday for distribution of child pornography and sex with at least two boys in Thailand who were ages 6 and 9, according to
The Canadian Press.
Corliss admitted meeting another pedophile on an Internet chat room and travelling to Thailand three times. He later added that he could have sex with as many boys as he wanted but would pay an initial fee of $200 and then $20 after that. Corliss also acknowledged that he had more than 600 photographs of children on his computer.
The
United Press International reports that he played Santa Claus and other fictitious characters at state fairs, corporate gatherings and children’s parties but there has been no evidence that Corliss hurt anyone in the New Jersey area.
Nevertheless, Corliss also videotaped one sexual assault, which later appeared on the Internet.
Corliss, a 60-year-old man who was arrested in May of 2008 after a two-day worldwide manhunt, was also ordered to pay a $5,000 fine, according to
AFP. Interpol had sent a cropped image of Corliss to police across the globe.
The US Attorney in New Jersey, Paul Fishman, said, “Wayne Corliss is a determined sexual predator who traveled the world to engage in horrible conduct with helpless young victims. The length of the sentence will ensure -- as it should -- that Corliss will never have the opportunity to prey on anyone else.”
The
Associated Press notes that while discussing the nature of his crimes, which was described as “beyond the bounds of human decency” by US District Judge Joseph A. Greenway, Corliss further added that during his time bragging about abusing other boys who were as young as four, he didn’t actually do it but, instead, he was playing a role, “I’m not that person. I’m not a monster.”
Greenaway would later tell Corliss, “I cannot think of something more heinous. These children are going to have to live with this for eternity, when their memory should be of a joyful, carefree time.”
In the end, the prosecutor told the press that they believe more people were involved in this sex ring and further investigations will take place.
