BOISE – Jason Lloyd Schaber, 40, of Boise, Idaho, pleaded not guilty today to charges of child exploitation, U.S. Attorney Wendy J. Olson announced. A trial is set for April 23, 2013, before U.S. District Judge Edward J. Lodge at the federal courthouse in Boise.

A federal grand jury last week returned a 23 count indictment alleging that Schaber posted ads on Craigslist offering a three-year-old minor for sex, and produced, distributed and possessed child pornography between 2010 and 2012. Schaber was arrested on May 31, 2012, and held on state charges. Ada County dismissed the state charges on Thursday in favor of the federal indictment.

The charge of use of facility in interstate commerce in aid of racketeering enterprise sex trafficking of a child – introducing a person under 18 years into prostitution, as charged in count one of the indictment, is punishable by up to five years in prison, a maximum fine of $250,000, and up to three years supervised release. The charge of sexual exploitation of children–production of sexually explicit images of a minor, as charged in counts two through six, is punishable by not less than 15 years and not more than 30 years in prison; distribution of sexually explicit images of minors, as charged in counts seven through 22, is punishable by not less than five years and not more than 20 years in prison; and possession of sexually explicit images of minors, as charged in count 23, is punishable by up to ten years in prison. Each count is punishable by at least five years to lifetime supervised release and a maximum fine of $250,000.

The case is being investigated by the Boise Police Department, the Ada County Sheriff's Office, and members of the Internet Crimes Against Children Task Force, with technical assistance provided by U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement’s (ICE) Homeland Security Investigations (HSI), and the High Technology Investigative Unit of the U.S. Department of Justice, Child Exploitation and Obscenity Section.

An indictment is a means of charging a person with criminal activity. It is not evidence. The person is presumed innocent until proven guilty beyond a reasonable doubt in a court of law.

This 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 the United States Attorneys' Offices and the Criminal Division's Child Exploitation and Obscenity Section, Project Safe Childhood marshals federal, state, and local resources to locate, apprehend, and prosecute individuals who sexually exploit children, and to identify and rescue victims. For more information about Project Safe Childhood, visit www.usdoj.gov/psc. For more information about internet safety education, visit www.usdoj.gov/psc and click on the tab “resources.” For more information about registered sex offenders in Idaho, visit www.isp.idaho.gov/sor_id/.