Omaha Man Sentenced to 9 Years’ Imprisonment for Receipt and Distribution of Child Pornography

United States Attorney Susan Lehr announced that Dominick Ryne, 30, of Omaha, Nebraska, was sentenced on July 19, 2024, in federal court in Omaha for receipt and distribution of child pornography. Chief United States District Judge Robert F. Rossiter, Jr. sentenced Ryne to 108 months’ imprisonment. There is no parole in the federal system. After Ryne’s release from prison, he will begin a 5-year term of supervised release. Ryne was also ordered to pay $3,000.00 in restitution to each of two known victims.

On April 15, 2023, a Nebraska State Patrol investigator (NSP) was conducting an online investigation of offenders sharing child pornography. Using a computer running investigative software, the investigator was able to obtain over 1,800 files from a peer-to-peer network from a device at Ryne’s address.

On May 16, 2023, NSP served a search warrant at Ryne’s residence and seized his devices for forensic examination. During the search of Ryne’s residence, he confessed to downloading and possessing child pornography.

Investigators completed data extractions from Ryne’s devices, which yielded evidence of over 700 files (both videos and images) of child pornography, including 418 files from a known set of victims of child pornography maintained by the National Center for Missing and Exploited Children. The forensic examination of Ryne’s devices yielded evidence that he possessed at least 617 child pornography image files and 170 video files. The files included pornographic images and videos involving prepubescent children, adults having sex with children, and children being bound with handcuffs and ligatures.

This case was brought as part of Project Safe Childhood, a nationwide initiative to combat the growing epidemic of child sexual exploitation and abuse launched in May 2006 by the Department of Justice. Led by United States Attorney’s Offices and the Criminal Division's Child Exploitation and Obscenity Section (CEOS), Project Safe Childhood marshals federal, state and local resources to better locate, apprehend and prosecute individuals who exploit children via the Internet, as well as to identify and rescue victims. For more information about Project Safe Childhood, please visit www.projectsafechildhood.gov.

This case was investigated by the Nebraska State Patrol.