Las Vegas Man Sentenced To Over Five Years In Prison For Possession Of Over 15,500 Images And Videos Of Child Pornography Including Infants And Toddlers

LAS VEGAS, Nev. – A Las Vegas man who possessed more than 15,500 photos and videos of child pornography, including the sexual abuse of infants and toddlers, was sentenced today to 68 months in federal prison to be followed by lifetime supervised release, announced U.S. Attorney Dayle Elieson for the District of Nevada.

Ryan Austin Rother, 43, was sentenced by U.S. District Judge Jennifer A. Dorsey. He previously pleaded guilty without the benefit of a plea agreement to one count of possession of child pornography.

According to court documents, on October 13, 2016, Rother’s wife contacted the Las Vegas Metropolitan Police Department to report child pornography she found on her husband’s computer. An officer visited the residence and spoke with Rother’s wife. She showed the officer an image on her husband’s computer of a minor girl being sexually assaulted by a man. During the execution of a search warrant, a total of 39 devices belonging to Rother were seized from the residence. A forensic evaluation revealed 15,676 images and 40 videos of child pornography on four different devices. Of these child pornography files, more than 300 images depicted bondage and violence and more than 3,000 images depicted infants and toddlers.

The case was investigated by the FBI and the Las Vegas Metropolitan Police Department. Assistant U.S. Attorney Christopher Burton prosecuted the case.

If you have information regarding possible child sexual exploitation, make a report to the National Center for Missing and Exploited Children (NCMEC) by calling the 24-hour hotline at 1-800-THE-LOST (1-800-843-5678) or by making a CyberTipline report at www.cybertipline.com.

The case was brought as part of Project Safe Childhood, a nationwide initiative launched in May 2006 by the Department of Justice to combat the growing epidemic of child sexual exploitation and abuse. Led by U.S. Attorneys’ Offices and the Criminal Division’s Child Exploitation and Obscenity Section, 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 and for information about internet safety education, please visit www.justice.gov/psc.

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