Ex-political candidate and admitted pedophile sent to Fresno to face sex crime charges
An admitted pedophile was extradited Thursday from Denver to Fresno County, where he will face multiple federal charges related to kidnapping and sex crimes involving a 12-year-old girl in Fresno.
Nathan Larson, a 40-year-old Virginia resident, was booked into Fresno County Jail and is not eligible for bail, according to the Fresno County Sheriff’s Office. He is due in court Wednesday.
The Sheriff’s Office said Larson faces several federal and state charges, including kidnapping, transportation of a minor with intent to engage in illegal sexual activity, online coercion and enticement, sexual exploitation of a minor, and receiving and distributing child pornography.
The combined charges carry up to a life sentence, according to Fresno County Sheriff’s Lt. Brandon Pursell.
Larson did not answer questions asked by Fresno County sheriff’s detectives Thursday and instead requested an attorney.
“Mr. Larson was not cooperative,” Pursell said. “This is a strong case (against him). I’m sure he’s well aware. He’s probably seen it. And he felt it was in his best interest to not speak with detectives.
“That does not change the fact who he is and what he’s done. He is absolutely a predator and one of the worst that we have dealt with in this task force. ... Nathan Larson was exceptionally bad.”
Larson, previously described by Fresno County Sheriff Margaret Mims as a “white supremacist and a well-known advocate for pedophilia,” was arrested at Denver International Airport on Dec. 14 in what police believe was a scheme to take the girl with him to Catlett, Virginia, where he lives.
He’d been in a Denver jail since while awaiting extradition.
Mims said Larson runs a website that “encourages the raping of children and sharing of naked photos and videos of children being raped.”
Investigators allege Larson used social media for more than two months to groom the child and eventually convinced her to join him on the East Coast. His plan fell apart after the girl’s parents reported her missing.
Law enforcement agencies in several states worked to track down Larson and the child.
Once in custody, detectives said they learned that Larson flew from Virginia to Fresno then went to the girl’s home.
He convinced the girl to sneak out of her house around 2 a.m. and arranged for a ride share company to take them to Fresno Yosemite International Airport.
Investigators said Larson told the girl to act as though she was disabled and unable to speak to ensure she would not talk to anyone at the airport before making their way onto the plane.
“That just really speaks to his level of sophistication and his premeditation in this case,” Pursell said.
Larson and the child boarded a flight to Washington, D.C. , that had a layover in Denver, authorities added.
A Denver police officer assigned to the local FBI Task Force spotted Larson at the airport and arrested him.
The Fresno County Sheriff’s Office said the girl was rescued and reunited with her family in Fresno. She was uninjured, deputies added.
Due to the national coverage of this abduction, more victims of Larson’s have come forward, including some in the United Kingdom, Ireland and Canada, according to Pursell.
“And we know he has tried to manipulate these girls into coming into the country,” Pursell said, “so that he could taken them back to his home in Virginia.”
A search warrant served at Larson’s home revealed that Larson is a white supremacist and a well-known advocate for pedophilia, according to the Sheriff’s Office.
He ran for political office as an independent in 2017, trying to become a member of the Virginia House of Delegates representing District 31. Larson lost the race.
Deputies added that Larson sent a detailed email to the U.S. Secret Service in 2008, threatening to kill the president. At the time, George Bush was outgoing and Barack Obama was elected in November of that year.
Larson pleaded guilty in federal court in October 2009 and served 14 months of a 16-month sentence in federal prison.
If you or someone you know have ever had inappropriate contact with Larson, you are asked to contact Fresno County sheriff’s Lt. Brandon Pursell at 559-600-8029 or brandon.pursell@fresnosheriff.org, or Sgt. Chad Stokes at 559-600-8144 or chad.stokes@fresnosheriff.org.
“For us, it’s important that he stands trial here, whether it’s state or federal court,” Pursell said. “He tried to come and take one of our kids. And I want to put out that message that if you come for our kids, we’re coming for you.”
This story was originally published February 11, 2021 at 9:13 PM.