FERGUS FALLS — A federal jury found a 34-year-old White Earth man guilty on two counts of producing child pornography on the Red Lake Reservation.
In a news release, the U.S. Attorney’s Office stated the 13-year-old victim used her school-issued laptop to message the National Suicide Prevention Lifeline.
The victim said in December 2020 that she had recently moved in with Ryan Edward Thompson, also known as Ryan Townsend. In her messages to the Lifeline, she said Thompson began sleeping in her room at night and sexually abused her.
Law enforcement later discovered sexual photographs taken with the victim’s own cellphone.
A federal jury found Thompson guilty on Friday, Feb. 2, after a three-day trial, for two counts of production and attempted production of child pornography.
He will be sentenced at a later date.
The case was brought as part of Project Safe Childhood, a nationwide initiative to combat the growing epidemic of child sexual exploitation.
The project uses federal, state and local resources to locate, apprehend and prosecute people who exploit children online, as well as identify and rescue victims.
If you need suicide or mental health crisis support, or are worried about someone else, call or text 988 or visit the 988 Suicide & Crisis Lifeline chat to connect with a trained crisis specialist.