A disturbing case of child exploitation has come to light in Idaho as a Post Falls man pleads guilty to producing images of sexually explicit conduct involving a three-year-old child.
Dylan Joral Ritter, 29, of Post Falls, Idaho, pleaded guilty today in United States District Court in Coeur d’Alene to production of child pornography, U.S. Attorney Wendy J. Olson announced.
According to his plea agreement, Ritter came to the attention of law enforcement in May 2012, when an agent with U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement’s (ICE) Homeland Security Investigation (HSI) discovered that Ritter had been making child pornography available on the Internet.
In July 2012, a federal search warrant was executed at Ritter’s Post Falls residence. Ritter admitted that he had been downloading child pornography over the Internet. He also admitted that he had been sexually abusing a three-year-old relative and had taken photos of this sexual contact with his cell phone.
An ICE forensic examiner located the images on Ritter’s cell phone. A Post Falls Police detective used the images to accurately identify the child.
The charge of sexual exploitation of a child by producing sexually explicit images is punishable by 15 to 30 years in prison, a maximum fine of $250,000, and a minimum term of five years up to lifetime supervised release.
The government is seeking forfeiture of the computer equipment and cell phone used in the offense. Sentencing is set for October 16, 2013, before U.S. District Judge Edward J. Lodge at the federal courthouse in Coeur d’Alene.
The case was investigated by U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement’s (ICE) Homeland Security Investigations (HSI), the Post Falls Police Department, and the Federal Bureau of Investigation. The agencies are North Idaho members of the Idaho Internet Crimes Against Children (ICAC) Task Force, a statewide coalition of local, state and federal law enforcement and prosecution agencies, focused on apprehending and prosecuting individuals who use the Internet to criminally exploit children.
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.
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- Lex Bennett Goodwin, Child Pornography Production, Idaho 2019 · Idaho
Key Facts
- State: Idaho
- Category: Sex Crimes
- Source: DOJ Press Release â†â€â€
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