Connecticut man sentenced to 12 years for child pornography
HARTFORD, Conn. — A Connecticut man, who formerly worked in a position of trust around children, was sentenced Friday to 12 years in prison for attempted receipt of child pornography following an investigation by U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement's (ICE) Homeland Security Investigations (HSI).
Ryan Harding, 29, of Woodstock, was sentenced April. 17, by U.S. District Judge Michael P. Shea in Hartford to 144 months of imprisonment, followed by 15 years of supervised release, for receiving and possessing child pornography.
According to court documents and statements made in court, between July 16, 2013 and Oct. 30, 2013, Harding received images and videos of child pornography that he downloaded from individuals via the Internet using a peer-to-peer file sharing program. During a search of the residence on Oct. 30, 2013, law enforcement officers seized computers and a thumb drive. Forensic analysis of Harding’s computers and thumb drive revealed more than 600 image files and videos of child pornography. He also possessed images of a partially naked 13-year old autistic boy. Harding had access to the child through his employment at an organization that provides services to people with intellectual and developmental disabilities.
“Sadly, crimes of this nature are far more common than most would like to believe, but our special agents will never stop targeting these depraved criminals,” said Bruce Foucart, special agent in charge for HSI Boston. “We will continue to work with our law enforcement partners to aggressively target criminals who prey on the most vulnerable members of society.”
After his Nov. 26, 2013 arrest, Harding was released on bond and placed on home confinement with GPS monitoring. On Nov. 20, 2014, Harding pleaded guilty to one count of receipt of child pornography and one count of possession of child pornography. At the conclusion of Friday’s sentencing proceeding, he was remanded to custody to begin serving his sentence.
This investigation was conducted with the Connecticut State Police Computer Crimes Unit and under HSI’s Operation Predator, an international initiative to protect children from sexual predators.
Since the launch of Operation Predator in 2003, HSI has arrested more than 10,000 individuals for crimes against children, including the production and distribution of online child pornography, traveling overseas for sex with minors, and sex trafficking of children. In fiscal year 2014, more than 2,300 individuals were arrested by HSI special agents under this initiative and more than 1,000 victims identified or rescued.
HSI encourages the public to report suspected child predators and any suspicious activity through its toll-free Tip Line at 1-866-DHS-2-ICE or by completing its online tip form. Both are staffed around the clock by investigators. Suspected child sexual exploitation or missing children may be reported to the National Center for Missing & Exploited Children, an Operation Predator partner, via its toll-free 24-hour hotline, 1-800-THE-LOST.
For additional information about wanted suspected child predators, download HSI's Operation Predator smartphone app or visit the online suspect alerts page.
HSI is a founding member and current chair of the Virtual Global Taskforce, an international alliance of law enforcement agencies and private industry sector partners working together to prevent and deter online child sexual abuse.
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