Crime & Safety
NJ Millionaire Sentenced For Sex With Teen Girl On Private Plane
He admitted to putting the plane on autopilot to have sex with the teen, who was then 15, and taking nude photos of her.
TRENTON, NJ — A Bedminster millionaire was sentenced Monday to seven years in prison for sexual conduct with a teen girl. Stephen Mell, 53, engaged in sex acts with a teen in his private plane while in the air, with the plane on autopilot, reports say.
Mell met the teen in May 2017 when her mother wanted him to give her flight lessons, according to documents obtained by Bridgewater Courier-News. He then began texting her. He was 51 and she was 15.
The texts soon became sexual when he asked her if she knew how to perform oral sex, the Courier-News reports documents as saying.
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On July 5, 2017, Mell performed sex acts on the child and the next day bought an emergency contraceptive pill for her, the outlet reported.
See more on Patch: Far Hills Man Had Sex Acts With Girl While Flying Plane: Report
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Later that month, on July 20, he flew with her in his private plane from Somerset Airport to Barnstable, Massachusetts.
From July to December 2017, Mell "knowingly traveled in interstate commerce for the purpose of engaging in the production of child pornography and sexual acts with a minor who he knew to be less than 17 years of age," a release from the U.S. Attorney's New Jersey District says.
On a flight, Mell put the plane on autopilot and engaged in sex acts with the girl. He also took nude photos of her, the release says.
Then, on July 21, 2017, he engaged in sex acts again with the child in Hunterdon County, the Courier-News report says.
He was arrested in June 2018.
In addition to his seven years in prison, Mell was sentenced to five years of supervised release, fined $40,000, ordered to pay restitution of $35,200 and a Justice for Victims of Trafficking Act assessment of $5,000.
Mell is also set to be sentenced on July 12 for third-degree endangering the welfare of a child for engaging in sex acts with the girl in Bedminster and Readington.
Mell came into his riches through W.H. Mell Associates, an investing firm that specialized in municipal bonds, nj.com reported.
He was an active member in his community, the Courier-News reported, as a board member of Far Hills Day School and other activities.
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