Last month, libertarian activist Cody Wilson drew global media attention over his plans to publish blueprints for a gun that could be fully made using a 3D printer. Now, Wilson is in the news for a whole different reason: He’s been accused of sexually assaulting a minor.
He fled to Taiwan, where he could be out of reach of police.
Police in Austin, Texas, told the Austin American-Statesman that Wilson, who’s 30, has been charged with sexual assault; he’s accused of having sex with a 16-year-old girl on August 15 and paying her $500.
The girl apparently met Wilson on the website SugarDaddyMeet.com, where he went by the name “Sanjuro,” according to the police affidavit seen by the Statesman
The girl gave police specific details about where she met Wilson, which authorities reportedly corroborated with surveillance footage and hotel records.
Police now believe that Wilson was tipped off by a friend of the 16-year-old that police were investigating him. They say he’s currently in Taiwan, where he frequently travels for business, and appears to have missed a scheduled flight back.
Taiwan doesn’t have an extradition treaty with the US — meaning it might not have to fulfill authorities’ request to send Wilson back to America for prosecution.
It remains unclear what, if any, effect the latest charges against Wilson will have on his 3D-printed gun plans and other projects. (He’s also known for other endeavors, including creating Hatreon, a now-defunct crowdfunding website that was beloved by the white nationalist alt-right and neo-Nazis.)
