North Las Vegas Felon Sentenced To 20 Years In Prison After Child Pornography Conviction

LAS VEGAS, Nev. – A North Las Vegas man who was convicted of a federal child pornography charge was sentenced today to 20 years in prison followed by a lifetime of supervised release, announced United States Attorney Nicholas A. Trutanich for the District of Nevada.

Richard Lee Saterstad, 41, was convicted in March 2019, of receiving and distributing child pornography. Saterstad has multiple prior felony convictions for non-exploitation offenses. United States District Judge Andrew P. Gordon presided over the bench trial and sentencing hearing.

According to court documents and evidence presented during the two-day trial, from November 23, 2013 to March 6, 2014, Saterstad received and distributed sexually explicit videos and images containing children over a peer-to-peer file sharing network. In March 2014, law enforcement executed a search warrant at his residence and found 14 different electronic devices belonging to Saterstad. A forensic examination of the seized items revealed over 3,500 images and almost 1000 videos of child pornography. Multiple images and videos contained bondage, bestiality, and infant/toddler victims.

The case was investigated by the Internet Crimes Against Children (ICAC) Task Force and prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorneys Kevin Schiff, Christopher Burton, and Elham Roohani.

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 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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