Perry County man pleads guilty in federal sex trafficking case

Noah Back, 26, of Vicco, pleaded guilty May 1 in Lexington federal court to transporting a minor across state lines for criminal sexual activity, a case that now adds a federal sex-trafficking prosecution to the already charged Perry County crash investigation.

In his plea agreement, Back admitted he took a 14-year-old girl to Atlanta and had sex with her in 2024. The charge carries a possible sentence of 10 years to life, making the plea far more than a procedural step. It puts a serious federal penalty on the table while families in Perry County are still waiting to see how the rest of the case unfolds.

The federal case is separate from the murder charge Back faces in connection with the deadly ATV and UTV crash that killed 16-year-old Emilynn Clark on Feb. 28 in the Vicco community. Perry County authorities said the wreck happened around 9 p.m. and involved a 16-year-old driver, Clark in the front passenger seat and two adult males riding in the back. The sheriff’s office said the teen driver was suspected of being under the influence of alcohol and was charged with DUI. Clark’s autopsy found she was not under the influence of drugs or alcohol when she died.

The crash investigation quickly widened. On March 3, sheriff’s officials said they had executed two search warrants, including one on Back’s phone, and said the phone evidence would be part of a separate investigation. Investigators later said they had video showing Back buying alcohol before the crash, a detail that raised fresh questions about how alcohol entered a teen-driven ride that ended in Clark’s death.

The fallout has reached beyond the courtroom. Perry County Schools said one adult who had recently volunteered as a basketball coach was no longer involved in any capacity, after Back’s name surfaced in the public discussion of the case. Back’s former role with the school system added another layer of concern in a county already grappling with the death of a 16-year-old and the behavior of adults around her.

For Perry County, the federal plea does not resolve the state murder case, but it changes the picture around it. It means Back now faces consequences in two separate court systems, one centered on Clark’s death and another on the alleged sexual exploitation of a minor. The next hearings will carry more than legal weight. They will shape how a community measures accountability after a fatal crash exposed a wider pattern of alleged criminal conduct.