OMAHA, Neb. -- A 29-year-old man was found guilty by a federal jury in Omaha of attempted sex trafficking of a minor, it was announced Thursday.

U.S. Attorney Jan Sharp said that Eswin Lopez, aka David Cantu, was convicted in federal court on Tuesday. Lopez, who is originally from Guatemala but was living in southeast Nebraska, was arrested last year as part of Project Safe Childhood, a nationwide initiative to combat child sexual exploitation and abuse.

Lopez faces a minimum sentence of 10 years in prison. Chief U.S. District Judge Robert F. Rossiter Jr. ordered a pre-sentence investigation and set Lopez's hearing for June 24.

In August 2020 and January 2021, a deputy with the Douglas County Sheriff’s Office posted an advertisement on a website commonly used for prostitution. Lopez responded to the phone number on the advertisement by text message and began communicating with an undercover deputy.

The deputy claimed to be a 15-year-old girl. Lopez continued messaging and contacting who he thought was a 15-year-old on a daily basis, requesting sex, authorities said. On January 15, 2021, Lopez agreed to pay $80 for a half hour of sex. Lopez then traveled from Waverly to Omaha and arrived at a prearranged meeting place with the cash and beer requested by the person purporting to be a minor.

This case was investigated by the Douglas County Sheriff’s Office as part of the FBI’s Child Enticement and Human Trafficking Task Force.