A Little Rock man who possessed and distributed images of children as young as 1 year old being sexually abused was sentenced Thursday to 15 years in federal prison.
On Jan. 9, 2018, Kenneth Laren Harvey, 49, pleaded guilty to one count of possessing child pornography and three counts of distributing child pornography, all in September of 2017.
The charges stemmed from an online investigation in which detectives downloaded child pornography from an Internet Protocol address that they traced to Harvey's home. The downloaded material included videos, some more than 30 minutes long, depicting sex acts being performed on children younger than 12, according to the U.S. attorney's office.
Investigators then obtained a search warrant for Harvey's home, and during its execution, seized multiple electronic devices. A forensic examination of the devices revealed over 2,000 images of child pornography, including depictions of sadism and masochism, as well as sex acts being performed on children as young as 1 to 3 years old.
During the search, authorities also discovered a peephole in Harvey's shower that he used to secretly film women, the U.S. attorney's office said.
Harvey was sentenced by U.S. District Judge James Moody Jr., who applied sentencing enhancements for the number of images involved and the young ages of the victims.
"The sexual abuse of any child is abhorrent, but the degree of depravity in this case is especially disturbing because of the infant victims involved," U.S. Attorney Cody Hiland said in a news release issued Friday. "These images are reprehensible, and collectors of child pornography like this defendant only create demand for more children to be abused. Our office will continue to prosecute those who perpetuate the horrors of the child pornography industry."
A federal grand jury indicted Harvey on Jan. 9, 2018, on the same charges to which he pleaded guilty.
In addition to the 15-year prison term, Moody ordered Harvey to pay $2,000 in restitution and to serve 10 years on supervised release.
Metro on 06/22/2019