by Geoff Fox
A Hagerstown man was sentenced to 138 months in federal prison last Wednesday, September 24, by a federal judge for sexually exploiting minor victims living in South America.
U.S. District Judge Brendan A. Hurson sentenced William Foster Alger, 76, of Hagerstown to the 138 months in federal prison that will be followed by lifetime supervised release, for coercion and enticement of a child, the U.S. Attorney’s Office said.
Alger was indicted by a federal grand jury in on child sex-abuse charges in February 2025 and pled guilty to the child-sex abuse charges in March of this year.
Kelly O. Hayes, U.S. Attorney for the District of Maryland, announced the sentence along with Special Agent in Charge Akil Baldwin, Homeland Security Investigations- Maryland; Colonel Paul Joey Kifer, Police Chief of the Hagerstown Police Department; and Gina Cirincion, State’s Attorney for Washington County.
According court documents, between November 2023 and December 2024, Alger used mobile phones and online applications to persuade, induce, entice, and coerce three minor victims to engage in sexual activity.
Alger paid the victims’ mothers, through Western Union payments, to send him images of the minors engaging in sexually explicit conduct.
The victims, officials said, were between 6 to 16 at the time of exploitation and living in Ecuador where Alger traveled to frequently.
Eventually, Alger purchased land in Ecuador and built a residence there.
Officials said Alger’s iCloud account included numerous photos of him at that residence with minor victims and their mothers.
According to online court documents, Alger was charged with 10 counts of possession of child pornography, one count of child pornography soliciting subject, and one count child pornography permit sex subject
The case was part of Project Safe Childhood, a nationwide initiative launched in May 2006 by the Department of Justice to combat the growing epidemic of child sexual exploitation and abuse.
U.S. Attorney Hayes commended HIS, HPD, and the Washington County State’s Attorney’s Office for their work in the investigation while also thanking Assistant U.S. Attorney Paul E. Budlow who prosecuted the federal case.
