A St. Louis County sex offender has been sentenced to 12 years in prison for possessing and distributing child sexual abuse material. Steven Martin Reich, 56, pleaded guilty in April to one count of possession of child pornography and one count of attempting to transfer obscene material to a minor.
According to the investigation, Reich uploaded an image of child exploitation material to the social media application Kik, which led to a CyberTipline Report to the National Center for Missing and Exploited Children. Further investigation found that Reich had chats with someone who claimed to be a sixth grader named “Tasha” on Kik, where he discussed his interest in engaging in sexual contact with her and requested nude images.
However, Homeland Security Investigations special agents determined that “Tasha” may be an adult male living in Utah, rather than a juvenile. Reich also distributed child sexual abuse material to people he communicated with on the social media application Wickr. A search history on his phone indicated that he sought out child sexual abuse material.
Reich has a prior conviction for child molestation in the first degree in St. Louis Circuit Court in 1999, which resulted in him being placed on the sex offender list. U.S. District Judge Sarah E. Pitlyk sentenced Reich to 12 years in prison, followed by a lifetime of supervised release.
The investigation was conducted by Immigration and Customs Enforcement’s Homeland Security Investigations, and the case was prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorney Jillian Anderson. This case is part of Project Safe Childhood, a nationwide initiative launched by the Department of Justice in 2006 to combat child sexual exploitation and abuse.
Project Safe Childhood aims to locate, apprehend, and prosecute individuals who exploit children via the internet, as well as identify and rescue victims. The initiative marshals federal, state, and local resources to achieve its goals. For more information about Project Safe Childhood, visit www.justice.gov/psc.
The sentencing of Steven Martin Reich serves as a reminder of the importance of efforts to combat child sexual exploitation and abuse. The Department of Justice and its partners will continue to work tirelessly to protect children and bring perpetrators to justice.
RELATED: St. Louis Sex Offender Reich Sentenced to 12 Years
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Key Facts
- State: Missouri
- Agency: DOJ USAO
- Category: Sex Crimes
- Source: Official Source ↗
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