A judge has sentenced a former northwest California city mayor to seven years in prison.
Robert Jacob, the former mayor of Sebastopol in Sonoma County, was charged with illicit sexual conduct with a 14-year-old.
Jacob, 45, pleaded no contest during his trial in January to six felony offenses involving sexual misconduct with a minor. Last Thursday, the district attorney’s office announced that Jacobs was found guilty and sentenced.
District Attorney Carla Rodriguez reported: “The victim should be commended for coming forward to report what Mr. Jacob did. His bravery in reporting Mr. Jacob’s crimes has made the community a safer place.”
Prosecutors reported that Jacob met the victim in an online chat room in early 2020. The victim was 14 at the time. The prosecution showed that Jacobs groomed the boy for a year as conversations transitioned to become sexual in nature.
Communications reportedly include Jacobs sending lewd videos and invitations to his home to engage in sexual activity under the pretense of performing chores.
The Santa Rosa Press Democrat reported that the victim met Jacob on Grindr, a dating app, and that Jacob knew he was a minor.
Fox News reported that “Jacob pleaded no contest to procuring a child to engage in a lewd act with another adult, sexual penetration of a minor, engaging in a lewd act with a minor, sending lewd material to a minor, and communicating with a minor with the intent to commit a sex crime.”
Jacob has begun serving his sentence. He must register as a sex offender when released from prison.
Jacob, a Democrat and cannabis business operator, ran for the Sebastopol City Council in 2012 and was elected mayor in 2014. He served one four-year term and chose not to seek reelection.
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