Former Erie Man Sentenced to More than 18 Years in Prison for Child Sexual Exploitation Crimes

ERIE, Pa. - A former resident of Erie, Pennsylvania has been sentenced in federal court to 222 months in jail, to be followed by 15 years of supervised release on his conviction of violating federal laws relating to the sexual exploitation of children. Holden was also ordered to pay $3,000 in restitution and a $600 special assessment, United States Attorney Cindy K. Chung announced today.

Senior United States District Judge David S. Cercone imposed the sentence on Ryan Matthew Holden, 37.

According to information presented to the court, Holden used Instagram to induce a ten-year-old female to provide him sexually explicit images and sent images of his penis to the minor victim. Holden also sent images of child sexual abuse material to the minor victim to encourage her to engage in sexually explicit conduct. Holden also received and possessed thousands of other items of child sexual abuse material.

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 (CEOS), 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, please visit www.justice.gov/psc.

Prior to imposing sentence, Judge Cercone noted the seriousness of Holden’s conduct and its significant impact upon the victim.

Assistant United States Attorney Christian A. Trabold prosecuted this case on behalf of the government.

United States Attorney Chung commended the Federal Bureau of Investigation and the Pennsylvania State Police for the investigation leading to the successful prosecution of Holden.