Idaho man pleads guilty to attempted sexual exploitation of a child

POCATELLO, Idaho — An Oakley man who spied on a minor with a hidden bedroom camera pleaded guilty Thursday to attempted sexual exploitation of a minor, following an investigation by U.S. Immigration and Custom Enforcement’s (ICE) Homeland Security Investigations (HSI).

Ray Carl Short, 66, admitted in a plea agreement to hiding a video camera in the bedroom of a minor to capture images of the victim engaged in sexually explicit conduct. An undercover investigation by HSI special agents in Wilmington, Delaware, uncovered Short’s interest in online child pornography. The information was forwarded to Idaho-based HSI special agents who executed a federal search warrant at Short’s home assisted by Cassia County Sheriff’s Office detectives. During the search, investigators seized a laptop computer, a security camera, and other related items. 

Court records state that a forensic analysis of Short’s electronic media revealed nearly 3,000 images and more than 140 video files of suspected child pornography. In a folder located on Short’s computer hard drive, investigators found six videos and nine images of the minor victim, several of which depicted the minor engaged in sexually explicit conduct. More videos and images of the victim were located in sub-folders. The security camera’s memory card contained recently recorded video files of the victim nude and getting ready for bed, and of the defendant placing the camera in, and retrieving it from, concealed locations of the victim’s bedroom, according to court documents.

According to the National Center for Missing and Exploited Children, the explicit materials found on Short’s laptop included victims from 64 documented child pornography series.

The charge of attempted sexual exploitation of a minor is punishable by 15 to 30 years in prison, a maximum fine of $250,000, and a term of supervised release of five years to life. Sentencing is set for April 8 at the federal courthouse in Pocatello.

The Cassia County Sheriff’s Office and the Cassia County Prosecutor’s Office assisted HSI in this investigation. The U.S. Attorney’s Office for the District of Idaho prosecuted the case.

This investigation was conducted 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 2013, more than 2,000 individuals were arrested by HSI special agents under this initiative.

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.