A federal judge has sentenced Andrew Boltz, a 27-year-old man from Kenton, Ohio, to 30 years in prison for sexually exploiting a Chicago-area girl he met online. Boltz began communicating with the then-16-year-old girl in 2020 through the social media platform Omegle and continued contact via text messaging and Snapchat. During these interactions, he persuaded the victim to send him sexually explicit images, instructing her on what type of conduct should be portrayed.
In 2023, a federal jury found Boltz guilty of exploitation and child pornography charges. The victim testified during the trial about being manipulated and degraded by Boltz.
The sentence was handed down by U.S. District Judge John Robert Blakey in federal court in Chicago. The announcement came from Andrew S. Boutros, United States Attorney for the Northern District of Illinois, alongside Douglas S. DePodesta, Special Agent-in-Charge of the FBI's Chicago Field Office.
Several law enforcement agencies contributed to the case, including police departments and state attorney offices across Illinois and Ohio. Assistant U.S. Attorneys Edward A. Liva, Jr., Elly Moheb, and Kavitha Babu represented the government.
This case is part of Project Safe Childhood (PSC), an initiative focused on combating child sexual exploitation and abuse by coordinating resources at various governmental levels to locate and prosecute offenders while providing services to victims.
Victims of sexual exploitation are encouraged to reach out to the National Center for Missing and Exploited Children at https://www.missingkids.org/ or by calling 1-800-843-5678, available 24/7.
