Man accused of sexually exploiting girl at Columbus hotels after meeting her online

COLUMBUS, Ohio (WCMH) -- A federal grand jury has indicted a Pennsylvania man on multiple charges accusing him of sexually exploiting a 13-year-old in Columbus.

Dustin Combs, 30, faces five counts of sexual exploitation of a minor, and five counts of travel with intent to engage in illicit sexual conduct with a minor. After meeting the 13-year-old girl online, the U.S. Attorney's Office for the Southern District of Ohio said he made multiple trips to Columbus to see her.

Federal court records do not share the specifics of how Combs met the girl online. But they do accuse him of engaging in sex acts with the 13-year-old at various Columbus area hotels. During the five meetups from July 2023 to April 2024, the indictment document also accused him of filming the sexual acts with the victim.

For the charges of sexual exploitation of a minor, Combs could face a minimum of 15 years in prison, or a maximum of 30 years. The traveling charges also carry the risk of up to 30 years in prison. As part of the indictment, the 30-year-old was also ordered to surrender his iPhone and two laptops to authorities.

At an arraignment hearing on Nov. 22, Combs pleaded not guilty to all 10 charges. He has a pretrial conference scheduled for Jan. 10, followed by a jury trial Jan. 21. Until then, a judge ordered that Combs remain in federal custody.