Ismail J. Ramsey, U.S. Attorney | U.S. Attorney for the Northern District of California
A federal grand jury has indicted Ricci Lee Wynne on charges related to the production of child sexual abuse materials. Wynne, a 39-year-old resident of San Francisco, appeared in federal court following the indictment filed on March 18, 2025.
The indictment alleges that Wynne employed, used, persuaded, induced, enticed, and coerced minor victims into engaging in sexually explicit conduct for creating videos and images on April 9 and October 29 of 2022. Wynne has been in federal custody since December 2024 due to a supervised release violation from another case. His next court appearance is scheduled for March 26, 2025, before Senior U.S. District Judge Charles R. Breyer.
Acting United States Attorney Patrick D. Robbins and FBI Special Agent in Charge Sanjay Virmani announced the charges against Wynne. He faces two counts of producing child pornography under Title 18 U.S.C. § 2251(a). The indictment does not establish guilt; all defendants are presumed innocent until proven guilty beyond a reasonable doubt.
If convicted, Wynne could face a minimum sentence of 15 years and up to a maximum of 30 years in prison for each count along with fines up to $250,000 per violation. Sentencing would consider the U.S. Sentencing Guidelines and federal statutes governing sentencing.
Assistant U.S. Attorneys E. Wistar Wilson and Eric Cheng are leading the prosecution with assistance from Soana Katoa and Marina Ponomarchuk following an investigation by the FBI. The case received support from the San Francisco Police Department and Homeland Security Investigations (HSI). Individuals with relevant information are encouraged to contact the FBI at (415) 553-7400 or through tips.fbi.gov.
