A former Joint Base Lewis-McChord soldier will serve 25 years in federal prison for sexually abusing four young children left in his care, the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Western District of Washington announced.
Jonathan Gentry, 36, was sentenced after pleading guilty in July to three counts of abusive sexual contact with a minor and one count of sexual abuse of a minor. The four victims disclosed what prosecutors described as “horrific sexual abuse.”
Gentry molested six children between January 2010 and February 2014. He was previously prosecuted in military court in August 2013 for sexually molesting two 13-year-olds, receiving a two-year military prison sentence.
“This defendant used threats of terrible harm to silence his victims,” Acting U.S. Attorney Teal Luthy Miller said. “These children showed great courage stepping forward to report sexual abuse that happened when they were as young as 3 years old. The children report being strangled or forced to drink alcohol so that Gentry could molest them.”
In April 2020, two children disclosed sexual abuse that occurred while Gentry lived on JBLM. One victim was 10 or 11 years old during the abuse, while the other was between 5 and 9 years old. Gentry threatened to harm the children’s families if they did not submit to abuse or told anyone, according to the attorney’s office.
A third child, who was between 3 and 5 years old during the abuse, disclosed the crimes to a trusted adult in April 2024. The fourth child was sexually abused in June 2013 and disclosed the abuse in March 2023.
Three victims spoke during sentencing about the impact of Gentry’s crimes. “My innocence was taken, my childhood was taken,” one victim stated.
“No amount of time he serves can compare to the loss of our childhood and the years that were stolen from us,” another victim told the court.
Prosecutors requested a 30-year prison sentence. Chief Judge Estudillo ordered Gentry to serve 20 years of supervised release following his prison term.
The case demonstrates the long-term impacts of child sexual abuse, with some victims taking years to disclose their experiences. The significant prison sentence reflects the severity of crimes against multiple vulnerable victims over an extended period.
The prosecution coordinated with military authorities given Gentry’s prior military court conviction and status as a JBLM-connected service member at the time of some offenses.
