GREENEVILLE, Tenn. -- Edward Keith Roberts, 50, of Fremont, Ind., was sentenced in U.S. District Court, by the Honorable J. Ronnie Greer, U.S. District Judge, to serve 18 months in federal prison and remain on supervised release for 10 years after his release from prison. The sentence was the result of a guilty plea by Roberts on May 24, 2011, to a federal grand jury indictment charging him with interstate travel and failure to register as a sex offender. He has remained in custody since his arrest on March 11, 2011.

Roberts was convicted in Wayne County, Mich., of criminal sexual contact in the first degree in 1987 and served 15 years in the Michigan Department of Corrections. In 2008, he was convicted of failing to comply with the Indiana Sex Offender Registry law in Steuben County, Ind. When law enforcement authorities in Steuben County, Ind., were unable to locate Roberts in Indiana, they learned he had moved to Greene County, Tenn., and contacted law enforcement officers in Greeneville.

“Sex offenders must be held accountable for failure to register in the community in which they reside. Residents of any community have a right to know if sex offenders live in their neighborhood and that they are monitored by the system,” said U.S. Attorney Bill Killian.

The indictment and subsequent conviction of Roberts was the result of the combined efforts of the Steuben County, Indiana Sheriff’s Office; Greene County, Tennessee Sheriff’s Office; Greeneville Police Department, and U.S. Marshals Service. Assistant U.S. Attorney Helen Smith represented the United States.

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