An Anchorage man, Richard Dougherty, 43, was sentenced to 30 years in prison and a lifetime of supervised release after pleading guilty to producing and possessing child pornography involving multiple minors known to him. The sentencing took place on December 2, following Dougherty's guilty plea on May 27, 2025.
Court documents reveal that Dougherty began sexually abusing a minor under the age of 16 in 2017. He documented the abuse through photos and videos, creating child sexual abuse materials (CSAM). Between January 2003 and April 2023, he possessed, accessed with intent to view, received, and distributed CSAM. Some of the material included visual depictions of his own abuse of the minor victim. Investigators found that Dougherty knowingly possessed over 600 images of CSAM.
U.S. Attorney Michael J. Heyman stated: “Mr. Dougherty’s crimes are despicable and perverse. This 30-year sentence ensures that the public and Alaska’s children are protected from his deviancy for the maximum number of years permitted under the law. I want to commend the survivors for showing extraordinary strength. I also want to thank U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement’s Homeland Security Investigations and the Alaska State Troopers for their diligent investigative work that helped bring this case to justice. We will continue to work together to hold accountable predators who target our children.”
Alaska State Troopers Colonel Maurice Hughes commented: “The exploitation of children is one of the most reprehensible crimes that we encounter. The Alaska State Troopers will continue to work tirelessly with our law enforcement partners to protect Alaskans, keep our children safe, and hold offenders accountable.”
The investigation was conducted by U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement’s Homeland Security Investigations (HSI) along with the Alaska State Troopers.
Assistant U.S. Attorney Adam Alexander prosecuted the case.
This prosecution is part of Project Safe Childhood, a national initiative started by the Department of Justice in May 2006 aimed at combating child sexual exploitation and abuse by coordinating federal, state, and local efforts to find offenders using the Internet as well as identify victims. More information about Project Safe Childhood can be found at https://www.justice.gov/psc.
