United States Attorney Ron Parsons announced that Box Elder, South Dakota, man was charged in federal district court with Sexual Exploitation of a Minor, Attempted Enticement of a Minor, Distribution of Child Pornography, Receipt of Child Pornography, and Possession of Child Pornography.
Cody Allen Green, age 37, was charged on Sept. 17, 2020. Green appeared before U.S. Magistrate Judge Daneta Wollmann on Sept. 21, 2020, and pleaded not guilty to the charges. The maximum penalty upon conviction is a mandatory minimum of 15 up to 30 years in federal prison and/or a $250,000 fine, a mandatory minimum of 5 years up to lifetime supervised release, and a $100 assessment to the Federal Crime Victims Fund. Restitution may also be ordered.
The charges relate to Green sexually exploiting an underage female in March 2019 via Facebook messenger by producing images of child pornography. He remained in possession of the images thereafter. A search of Green’s devices found that he knowingly received, distributed, and possessed images depicting minors involved in sexually explicit conduct. The charges are merely an accusation and Green is presumed innocent until and unless proven guilty.
The investigation is being conducted by the South Dakota Division of Criminal Investigation, the Department of Homeland Security, Department of the Air Force Office of Special Investigations, the Rapid City Police Department, and the Pennington County Sheriff’s office Assistant U.S. Attorney Sarah B. Collins is prosecuting the case.
Green was detained pending trial. A trial date has been set for Nov. 24, 2020.
Source: U.S. Department of Justice, Office of the United States Attorneys
