Bruce Ralph Sturtz, Possession and Distribution of Child Pornography, Maryland 2019

Greenbelt, Maryland – In a disturbing case of child exploitation, 73-year-old Bruce Ralph Sturtz of Gaithersburg, Maryland, has been indicted for possession and distribution of child pornography. The indictment, returned on February 25, 2019, and unsealed upon Sturtz’s arrest, alleges that the defendant distributed child pornography over the Internet on March 23, 2017, and possessed child pornography on October 25, 2017, including an image involving a prepubescent minor.

The indictment also includes a special allegation that Sturtz has a prior conviction involving the sexual abuse of a minor. On October 6, 2000, Sturtz was convicted of a third-degree sexual offense in the Circuit Court for Montgomery County.

If convicted, Sturtz faces a mandatory minimum sentence of 10 years in prison and up to 20 years in prison for possession of child pornography, and a minimum mandatory sentence of 15 years in prison and up to 40 years in prison for distribution of child pornography.

An indictment is not a finding of guilt. An individual charged by indictment is presumed innocent unless and until proven guilty at some later criminal proceedings.

Sturtz had his initial appearance today in U.S. District Court in Greenbelt and was ordered to be detained pending a detention hearing scheduled for Tuesday, March 5, 2019, at 2:00 p.m. before U.S. Magistrate Judge Timothy Sullivan.

This case was brought as part of Project Safe Childhood, a nationwide initiative launched in May 2006 by the Department of Justice to combat the growing epidemic of child sexual exploitation and abuse. The FBI and the Maryland State Police Internet Crimes Against Children Task Force were instrumental in this investigation.

United States Attorney Robert K. Hur commended the FBI and the Maryland State Police for their work in this case. Mr. Hur thanked Assistant U.S. Attorneys Leah B. Grossi and Joseph R. Baldwin for their efforts in prosecuting the federal case.