Registered sex offender convicted of sex offenses against teen in El Cajon motel

A registered sex offender who engaged in sex acts with a 16-year-old girl at an El Cajon motel was convicted Wednesday of four felony sex offenses.

Michael Inman, 71, was arrested last year along with co-defendant Lawrence Cantrell for the March 2023 encounter with the minor at the Motel 6 on Montrose Court.

Police said the crime came to light after an employee for homeless services provider People Assisting the Homeless, or PATH, told police that in a phone conversation, Cantrell admitted to sex acts with the girl.

Further investigation led to the discovery of a video on each man’s cellphone showing the juvenile engaging in sex acts with Inman, police said.

At a preliminary hearing held last year in El Cajon Superior Court, defense attorneys for both men argued their clients believed the girl was 18.

Cantrell, 35, pleaded guilty to several sex offenses last month and is set to be sentenced to four years and eight months in state prison.

Inman was convicted by an El Cajon jury Wednesday of crimes including sex with a person under 18 and possession of child sexual abuse material.

Both men have previously been convicted of sex offenses. Inman was convicted of assault with intent to commit rape in 1978 in Orange County and lewd acts upon a child in 2005 in San Diego County. Cantrell was convicted of possession of child sexual abuse material in 2018 in San Diego County.