Peter Allen Snyder, a 43-year-old resident of Smyrna, Tennessee, has been sentenced to 20 years in federal prison. The sentencing took place last Thursday following his guilty plea to charges of sexual exploitation of a minor and distribution of child pornography. This was announced by Robert E. McGuire, Acting United States Attorney for the Middle District of Tennessee. Snyder is also mandated to register as a sex offender.
Acting United States Attorney Robert E. McGuire emphasized the importance of prosecuting such crimes: “One of our office’s highest priorities is the aggressive prosecution of crimes against children,” he stated. “We will seek to hold these criminals accountable in order to protect the most vulnerable members of our community.”
Court records reveal that on November 21, 2019, Snyder produced at least nine sexually explicit images involving a Minor Victim using his cell phone. These images were later distributed online. The incident came under scrutiny in December 2021 when Yahoo reported a CyberTip to the National Center for Missing and Exploited Children concerning child sexual abuse material possession and distribution. This tip included twenty-five images related to child sexual abuse material, with nine involving the Minor Victim, which were sent via email from a Russian-based service with "Trade" as the subject header.
GPS data from these images confirmed they were taken near Snyder's residence in Cannon County and included information about the cell phone used for creating them. Upon questioning after his arrest, Snyder claimed he had discarded the phone at a recycling kiosk.
Post-sentence, Snyder will be subjected to supervised release for life.
The investigation was conducted by Homeland Security Investigations alongside the Tennessee Bureau of Investigation and Woodbury Police Department. Assistant U.S. Attorney Monica R. Morrison led the prosecution.
