Ashland Man Sentenced to 15 Years in Prison for Child Exploitation

Christopher D. Rarick, 35, of Ashland, was sentenced to more than 15 years in prison for exploiting children, said Steven M. Dettelbach, United States Attorney for the Northern District of Ohio, and Stephen D. Anthony, Special Agent in Charge of the FBI’s Cleveland Office.

Rarick pleaded guilty earlier this year to two counts of child exploitation and one count of possession of child pornography. U.S. District Judge Benita Pearson sentenced him to 188 months in prison.

Rarick was stopped for a traffic violation by an Ashland police officer on Feb. 14, 2013. Rarick became agitated and noncompliant and was arrested. At one point during the encounter Rarick produced his cell phone and claimed to be recording the encounter with police. The cell phone was seized as evidence after the arrest, according to court documents.

Ashland police obtained a search warrant for the phone, seeking files related to the traffic stop. Upon searching the phone, police also found numerous pictures and videos of child pornography. Police obtained another search warrant and found images of juveniles engaged in various sex acts. Three of the videos were of what police described as an apparent rape by Rarick of a young girl who was passed out, according to court documents.

This case was prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorney Michael A. Sullivan following an investigation by the FBI and the Ashland Police Department.