Cedar Rapids man accused of attempting to buy sex from 14-year-old in Marion

MARION — A 49-year-old Cedar Rapids man was arrested Tuesday, accused of offering to pay a 14-year-old for sex at a Marion park.

John Warren Barker, 49, faces charges of enticing a minor under 16 for a sexual purpose, prostitution: purchasing services of a person under 18; and providing tobacco to a person under 21.

The 14-year-old told investigators that Barker in June asked her to be his girlfriend, bought cigarettes for her, called himself her sugar daddy and offered to pay her to have sex with him, according to a criminal complaint.

Barker told police he was friends with the girl, saying he met and spent time with her at Thomas Park in Marion. He said he’d fantasized about having sex with the girl and had asked “if she would ever have sex with a guy like him,” the complaint states.

Barker is in the Linn County Jail on a $10,000 cash-only bond.

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