SCRANTON - The United States Attorney’s Office for the Middle District of Pennsylvania announced today that Jared Andrew Novy, age 37, of Jim Thorpe, Pennsylvania, and Keith Keiser, age 26, of Lehighton, Pennsylvania, were indicted separately on Aug. 22, 2017, by a federal grand jury with multiple child exploitation crimes.
According to United States Attorney Bruce D. Brandler, both indictments allege that Novy and Keiser produced multiple videos and images of a minor engaged in sexually explicit conduct. The indictments further allege that Novy and Keiser received, distributed and possessed material in the form of visual depictions involving the use of minors engaging in sexually explicit conduct.
The charges stem from an investigation conducted by the Homeland Security Investigations - Philadelphia Division. Assistant United States Attorney Michelle Olshefski is prosecuting the cases.
Both cases were 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.usdoj.gov/psc For more information about internet safety education, please visit www.usdoj.gov/psc and click on the tab "resources."
Indictments and Criminal Informations are only allegations. All persons charged are presumed to be innocent unless and until found guilty in court.
A sentence following a finding of guilt is imposed by the Judge after consideration of the applicable federal sentencing statutes and the Federal Sentencing Guidelines.
The maximum penalty under federal law for Novy is 150 years’ imprisonment, a term of supervised release following imprisonment, and a fine. The maximum penalty under federal law for Keiser is 120 years’ imprisonment, a term of supervised release following imprisonment, and a fine. Under the Federal Sentencing Guidelines, the Judge is also required to consider and weigh a number of factors, including the nature, circumstances and seriousness of the offense; the history and characteristics of the defendant; and the need to punish the defendant, protect the public and provide for the defendant's educational, vocational and medical needs. For these reasons, the statutory maximum penalty for the offense is not an accurate indicator of the potential sentence for a specific defendant.
Source: U.S. Department of Justice, Office of the United States Attorneys
