A sex offender in Charlotte, North Carolina, has been sentenced to 120 months in prison for possession of child sexual abuse material (CSAM). Ricky Grover Aaron, a 62-year-old registered sex offender, will also serve a lifetime of supervised release and pay restitution to his victims. This announcement was made by Russ Ferguson, U.S. Attorney for the Western District of North Carolina.
Robert M. DeWitt, Special Agent in Charge of the FBI in North Carolina, joined Ferguson in making the announcement. According to court documents and details from the sentencing hearing, an undercover online investigation by the FBI revealed that Aaron used a BitTorrent application to share CSAM. Investigators were able to download files from his electronic devices on multiple occasions.
In November 2022, law enforcement executed a search warrant at Aaron's residence. Several electronic devices were seized and examined. Investigators found over 300,000 CSAM images depicting minors being sexually abused and exploited.
During the sentencing hearing, it was revealed that Aaron had failed to register as a sex offender after moving to Mecklenburg County due to prior convictions: one federal conviction for receipt and possession of CSAM and another state conviction for false imprisonment and aggravated exploitation of a minor in Tennessee.
On October 29, 2024, Aaron pleaded guilty to possession of child pornography involving minors under age 12. He remains in federal custody awaiting transfer to a designated federal facility.
U.S. Attorney Ferguson commended the FBI's investigation efforts. Assistant United States Attorney Katherine Armstrong prosecuted the case.
This case is part of Project Safe Childhood, an initiative launched by the Department of Justice in May 2006 aimed at combating child sexual exploitation and abuse nationwide.
Separately this week, Operation Restore Justice led by the FBI resulted in rescuing 115 children and arresting 205 offenders nationwide. Among those arrested was Terrell Shawn Anderson from Charlotte who faces charges related to distributing and possessing CSAM.
“We will aggressively prosecute these cases,” said U.S. Attorney Ferguson alongside the FBI’s announcement about Operation Restore Justice results.
Anderson is presumed innocent until proven guilty beyond reasonable doubt in court.