Southwest Pennsylvania Foster Parent Sentenced to 30 Years in Prison for Producing Sexually Explicit Videos of Minors in His Care
PITTSBURGH - A former resident of Johnstown, Pennsylvania, has been sentenced in federal court in Johnstown to 360 months’ (30 years’) imprisonment and a lifetime term of supervised release upon his conviction for violating federal child sexual exploitation laws, United States Attorney Cindy K. Chung announced today.
U.S. District Judge Stephanie L. Haines imposed the sentence on Ronald Oshensky, Jr., age 43.
According to information presented to the court, Mr. Oshensky was a foster parent with Children and Youth Services (CYS) organizations from several southwestern Pennsylvania counties. Through his guilty plea and pursuant to his plea agreement Mr. Oshensky acknowledged that from July 14, 2011, to Oct. 23, 2011, the exact date being unknown, he produced two videotapes containing a total of 18 video clips which depicted seven different minors engaged in sexually explicit conduct all of which were produced using materials that were shipped or transported in interstate or foreign commerce.
Upon imposing the sentence, Judge Haines told Mr. Oshensky that his offense was among the most heinous she had encountered in her 20-year career in law enforcement and three years on the bench. She stated that her decision to impose the statutory maximum penalty of 30 years’ imprisonment was the easiest sentencing decision she has had to make.
“Ronald Oshensky, Jr. will spend the next 30 years in federal prison for the heinous crimes he committed against already disadvantaged children entrusted to his care,” said U.S. Attorney Chung. “It is our duty to prosecute child predators and secure appropriate sentences so that communities are safe and victims can become survivors.”
“Predators like Ronald Oshensky exploit the very systems put into place to prevent vulnerable children from being subjected to abusive living situations,” said William S. Walker, Special Agent in Charge of HSI’s Philadelphia office. “Through coordination and teamwork, HSI, FBI and the Johnstown Police Department worked hard to ensure our most vulnerable population – our children – are spared from sexual abuse. This underscores one of HSI’s most critical missions. Time is always of the essence when it comes to the exploitation of our children and our dedicated agents, analysts and task force officers work quickly and decisively to keep children safe from predators who seek to do them harm.”
Assistant United States Attorney Arnold P. Bernard Jr. prosecuted this case on behalf of the government.
Homeland Security Investigations, the Federal Bureau of Investigation, and the Johnstown Police Department conducted the investigation that led to the prosecution of Ronald Oshensky, Jr.
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, please visit www.justice.gov/psc.