Henrico Man Pleads Guilty to Child Exploitation Enterprise

Noland Anthony Harper, a 61-year-old man from Henrico County, Virginia, pleaded guilty to engaging in a child exploitation enterprise.

According to court documents, Harper conspired with three other adult males to sexually abuse three juvenile victims, photograph the abuse, and then distribute the photos to other individuals over the Internet.

Harper traveled from Richmond to Desert Hot Springs, California on three separate occasions in 2014, where he met with co-conspirators and minor boys, all under the age of 16. The boys were subjected to various forms of sexual abuse, including explicit acts, during these trips.

During the trips, Harper took the boys to the beach, Disneyland, and the house of a co-conspirator in Arizona, where he bought gifts to induce them to pose for sexually explicit photographs. These images were then uploaded to a website from Harper’s Henrico residence and distributed to willing recipients.

Law enforcement detected Harper after one of the co-conspirators was arrested in California on outstanding warrants for child exploitation offenses. Evidence recovered from the arrest revealed a link to Harper and led to his indictment by a federal grand jury on March 4, 2015.

Harper faces a mandatory minimum sentence of 20 years in prison and a maximum sentence of life in prison when he is sentenced on October 9, 2015. He will also be required to register as a sex offender in any U.S. jurisdiction in which he lives, works, or attends school.

The case was investigated by the FBI’s Innocent Images Task Force and Homeland Security Investigations. U.S. Attorney Dana J. Boente, Attorney General Mark Herring, and FBI Special Agent Adam S. Lee made the announcement after the plea was accepted by U.S. Magistrate Judge Roderick C. Young.

Assistant U.S. Attorneys Jessica D. Aber and Thomas A. Garnett, and Special Assistant U.S. Attorney Samuel E. Fishel, are prosecuting the case.

A copy of this press release can be found on the website of the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Eastern District of Virginia. Related court documents and information may be found on the website of the District Court for the Eastern District of Virginia or on PACER by searching for Case No. 3:15-cr-36.

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