BOISE – Arturo Adrian Ramirez, 57, of Parma, Idaho, pleaded guilty today in U.S. District Court in Boise to failure to register as a sex offender, U.S. Attorney Wendy J. Olson announced.

According to the plea agreement, Ramirez previously pled guilty in 1995 to sexual abuse of a child in Bexar County, Texas. His sentence required him to register as a sex offender. Ramirez was listed as non-compliant in Texas, and moved to Idaho where he failed to register. He was working as a laborer in western Idaho and eastern Oregon.

The charge carries a maximum punishment of up to ten years in prison, a fine up to $250,000, and a minimum term of five years up to lifetime supervised release.

Sentencing is scheduled for May 14, 2012, before U.S. District Judge Edward J. Lodge at the federal courthouse in Boise.

The case was investigated by the United States Marshals Service and the Idaho Sex Offender Watch Task Force.

The Sex Offender Registration and Notification Act (SORNA), which was passed by Congress in 2006, requires sex offenders to register and keep their registration current in each jurisdiction where they reside, are employed or are students. Violations of SORNA can be prosecuted in federal court.