A registered sex offender allegedly fled the U.S. on a Royal Caribbean cruise to Mexico, then lived large on the beaches of Cancun under an assumed name while a woman back home paid his bills.
But when the woman later exposed Corey Richard Parton’s location and pseudonym in an ill-advised Facebook DM to another woman he had been involved with, he was promptly outed to the feds, according to a probable cause affidavit obtained by The Daily Beast.
Parton, 34, was indicted in 2016 on 23 counts of producing, conspiring to produce, and possession of child pornography. Parton pleaded guilty in 2018 to a pair of related felonies and was on probation in Virginia, the state in which he was convicted and where he told the court he was residing. Parton’s co-defendant, Angela Renee Dowell-Wilson, got 23 years for, among other things, what prosecutors said was a plan to “engage in sexual activity with a child and an adult male.”
It is unclear if Parton has yet been captured; a spokesman for the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Western District of Virginia, which is prosecuting the case, told The Daily Beast on Monday that he wasn’t familiar with the situation and would try to find out more.
As a Tier III offender, Parton is required to re-register with authorities every 90 days, the affidavit states. But he hadn’t done so since May, according to the affidavit.
On Aug. 8, a trooper with the Virginia State Police (VSP) was assigned to run a check on Parton, it explains. The trooper discovered that Parton—who, under the terms of his probation, is not allowed to maintain any social media presence whatsoever—had a now-defunct secret Instagram account, with the handle “Memphis Parton.”
“Offenders are commonly known to use names other than their own to conceal the fact that they are registered sex offenders,” the affidavit states.
Parton had also broken the rules by registering a car at an address other than the one on file with probation officials and taking a job at Domino’s Pizza without reporting it, according to the affidavit. He was arrested on Aug. 16 on the three violations, and released on bond, the affidavit states.
Three weeks later, U.S. diplomatic services contacted VSP with news that Parton “had boarded a cruise, gotten off the cruise ship in Mexico, and never returned to the ship prior to its departure,” according to the affidavit. It says Parton didn’t contact VSP to ask for permission to leave the country, as required by the terms of his probation.
On Oct. 27, a deputy U.S. marshal spoke with a confidential source—Parton’s ex-girlfriend—whose name The Daily Beast is withholding. She confirmed that Parton had traveled to Galveston, sailed to Cancun, and fled, the affidavit states. The ex said she had been contacted by “unknown individuals” on Sept. 14, who “told her that Parton had died,” but that she received a voicemail from him a few days after, the affidavit goes on.
She told the U.S. Marshals Service (USMS) that a woman from Morristown, Tennessee, got in touch with her on Facebook, sending her messages “asking questions about Parton and [her] relationship with Parton,” according to the affidavit.
“The [woman] told [Parton’s ex] that she has sent Parton money via cashapp [sic] multiple times, as recently as the week of October 23, 2023,” the affidavit continues. “[She] told [the ex] that Parton was still in Cancun, Mexico at the Ocean Dream Hotel on Coco Bongo Beach.” (The affidavit appears to conflate the Ocean Dream with the Coco Bongo Beach Party, an over-the-top nightlife spot next to the resort.)
The ex gave the USMS investigator “multiple phone numbers that Parton has used to contact her,” according to the affidavit.
The Ocean Dream is an all-inclusive resort in Cancun’s Zona Hotelera, directly on the beach, and features two infinity pools, an outdoor jacuzzi, two bars, and “spectacular views of the sea or of the Nichupte lagoon,” its website informs visitors.
“Admire the sunsets or sunrises from the comfort of your balcony or walk along the beach to enjoy the beautiful turquoise waters of the Caribbean,” it says.
On Nov. 3, U.S. Customs and Border Protection verified to the USMS district sex offender coordinator for Western Virginia that Parton had gotten on a Royal Caribbean cruise ship in Galveston that “had planned stops in Mexico on Sept. 6,” according to the affidavit. On Nov. 14, the VSP got word from another tipster, who said Parton was still at the Ocean Dream, and was checked in under the name “Dominique Garcia,” the affidavit states.
“According to the tip, Parton was still being funded by [the woman in Tennessee],” it says.
The USMS shared the info with deputies stationed in Mexico “for assistance in locating and apprehending Parton with… Mexican Immigration Officials,” according to the affidavit. Parton has been missing since at least Sept. 6, in violation of the Sex Offender Registration and Notification Act (SORNA).
The charge, a felony, carries a penalty of up to 10 years in prison. Parton does not have a lawyer listed in court records and was unable to be reached.
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