Savannah Man Sentenced to 20 Years in Prison for Sexual Exploitation of a Minor

SAVANNAH, GA—Robert A. Flaesch, 46, of Savannah, Georgia, was sentenced last week to serve 20 years in federal prison by U.S. District Court Judge William T. Moore, Jr. for sexually exploiting a minor.

United States Attorney Edward J. Tarver said, “This defendant admitted to knowingly using a child to engage in sexually explicit conduct for the purpose of producing child pornography. The U.S. Attorney’s Office aggressively prosecutes individuals, like this defendant, who are involved in the sexual exploitation of children. Flaesch’s prosecution sends a message that we will do all in our power to protect our children from such predatory acts.”

The evidence presented during Flaesch’s guilty plea and sentencing hearings showed that between 1998 and 2003, Flaesch was involved in a relationship with the minor’s mother. He periodically resided with the mother and child at different locations in the Southern District of Georgia, including Tybee Island and Pooler Georgia. During this time, Flaesch hid a video camera at different locations within the residences and filmed the young child in various states of undress. He also crept into the sleeping child’s room and filmed himself engaging in sexually explicit conduct with the minor child. In 2011, the Garden City Police Department was provided with a tape of the videos recorded by Flaesch. The FBI investigated the matter and was able to determine the identity of the child on the videos, who is now an adult. Federal agents arrested Flaesch this year in Detroit while he was returning from a trip to the Philippines.

Flaesch was also ordered to serve three years of supervised release and to register as a sex offender upon his release from prison. There is no parole in the federal system.

This case was brought as part of Project Safe Childhood, which is a nationwide U.S. Department of Justice initiative designed to protect children from online exploitation and abuse. Led by the United States Attorneys’ Offices, 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. Assistant United States Attorneys E. Greg Gilluly, Jr. and Jennifer G. Solari prosecuted the case for the United States. For additional information, please contact First Assistant United States Attorney James D. Durham at (912) 201-2547.