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Office of the Attorney General
Bracken County Man Indicted on 485 Counts of Distribution and Possession of Child Pornography
Attorney General Jack Conway and Kathryn Hendrickson, Commonwealth’s Attorney for the 19th Judicial Circuit representing Bracken, Fleming and Mason Counties, today jointly announced the indictment of a Bracken County man on 485 counts of distribution and possession of child pornography.
Ronald Peed Jr., 32, of Foster, was indicted on September 17, 2009 on 67 counts of distribution of matter portraying a sexual performance by a minor and 418 counts of possession of matter portraying a sexual performance by a minor, all Class D felony charges. Peed entered a not guilty plea at his arraignment in Bracken Circuit Court. He was released from the Mason County Regional Detention Center after posting a $40,000 property bond.
Peed’s indictment follows a joint investigation between the Office of the Attorney General’s Cybercrimes Unit, a member of the Internet Crimes Against Children Task Force (ICAC), and the Westerville, Oh. Police Department. After identifying a computer IP address in Kentucky that was actively possessing and trading suspected child pornography in April and May 2009, Westerville Police contacted the Office of the Attorney General’s Department of Criminal Investigations to provide information needed to move forward with a search warrant. Peed was arrested on May 19, 2009.
The prosecution of this case is being handled by the office of Commonwealth’s Attorney Kathryn Hendrickson.
A charge is merely an accusation and a defendant is presumed innocent until and unless proven guilty.
OAG Cybercrimes Stats since General Conway created the unit in June 2008:
- Launched 102 child porn investigations
- Seized 35,561 child pornographic images and videos
- 12 arrests
- Assisted 35 local law-enforcement agencies process digital forensics
- Opened digital forensics lab in our office –processed 464 hard drives and removable devices
- Presented cybersafety program to more than 14,000 students
Ronald Peed, Jr.
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