A 71-year-old registered sex offender who engaged in sex acts with a 16-year-old girl at an El Cajon motel was sentenced Wednesday to 35 years to life in state prison.
Michael Inman was convicted by an El Cajon Superior Court jury of four felony sex offenses, including possession of child sexual abuse material for the March 2023 encounter with the minor at the Motel 6 on Montrose Court.
Police said the crime was uncovered when an employee with People Assisting the Homeless, or PATH, a homeless services provider, reported that Lawrence Cantrell, Inman’s co-defendant, admitted during a phone call to engaging in sex acts with the girl.
Further investigation led to the discovery of a cellphone video showing the juvenile engaging in sex acts with Inman, police said.
Cantrell, 36, pleaded guilty to charges that include unlawful sexual intercourse with a minor and possession of child sexual abuse material. He was sentenced earlier this year to four years and eight months in state prison.
Both men had previously been convicted of sex offenses before the incident.
Inman was convicted of assault with intent to commit rape in 1978 in Orange County and lewd acts upon a child in 2005 in San Diego County. Cantrell was convicted of possession of child sexual abuse material in 2018 in San Diego County.
