Project Safe Childhood

Nottingham Man Pleads Guilty To Child Pornography Possession

CONCORD, NEW HAMPSHIRE:   Ryan Rathe, 28, of Nottingham, pled guilty in United States District Court for the District of New Hampshire to possessing child pornography, announced U.S. Attorney John P. Kacavas.

            The investigation into Rathe began in 2010, when the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) received information from the New Hampshire Crimes Against Children Task Force that an undercover officer had intercepted images of child pornography being made available by a computer user in Nottingham, New Hampshire.

            Based on information provided by the task force, DHS conducted further investigation and secured a search warrant for Rathe’s residence in Nottingham.  Computer evidence seized from Rathe’s home was examined and found to contain multiple images depicting young children engaged in illicit sexual acts.

            United States Attorney Kacavas said, “Identifying, finding, and prosecuting predators like the defendant has been, and will continue to be, among the highest priorities of my office.”

            Rathe, who is scheduled for sentencing in January 2015, faces a maximum prison term of ten years, followed by no less than five years of supervised release, and a maximum fine of $250,000.

            The case was investigated by the Department of Homeland Security, Homeland Security Investigations, in conjunction with the New Hampshire Crimes Against Children Task Force (NH ICAC) and the Massachusetts State Police and is being prosecuted under Project Safe Childhood, a nationwide initiative by the U.S. Department of Justice to combat the growing epidemic of child sexual exploitation and abuse.   Led by the United States Attorneys’ 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 identify and rescue victims. For more information about Project Safe Childhood, please visit www.projectsafechildhood.gov