Kentucky Man Sentenced to 25 Years in Prison Related to Sextortion Scheme

BIRMINGHAM, Ala. - A Kentucky man was sentenced today on a charge of sexual exploitation of children, announced U.S. Attorney Prim F. Escalona and Federal Bureau of Investigation Special Agent in Charge Carlton L. Peeples.

U.S. District Court Judge L. Scott Coogler sentenced Aden Willis Yeager, 22, of Louisville, Kentucky, to 300 months in prison, followed by a life term of supervised release. As part of his sentence, Yeager was ordered to pay $92,620 in restitution to the victims and a $50,000 special assessment under the Amy, Vicky, and Andy Act. In March, Yeager pleaded guilty to one count of production of child pornography.

According to the plea agreement, in November 2020, the West Alabama Human Trafficking Task Force received a CyberTipline report from the National Center for Missing and Exploited Children related to acts of sextortion committed by Yeager towards a minor female. Yeager coerced and enticed the minor to send him nude photos of herself, and then he sold the photos online. When the minor would refuse to send more pictures, Yeager would threaten to send her nude photos to everyone in her contact list on social media. Further investigation revealed over 60 individual folders in Yeager's Dropbox account that were labeled by female names and contained sexually explicit images and videos. FBI agents were able to positively identify and locate 19 minor females who had been contacted by Yeager to send pornographic photos.

FBI Birmingham's Child Exploitation and Human Trafficking Task Force investigated the case along with FBI Louisville, Kentucky; the West Alabama Human Trafficking Task Force; and the University of Alabama Police Department. Assistant U.S. Attorney R. Leann White prosecuted the case.

The U.S. Attorney's Office (USAO) and the National Children's Advocacy Center (NCAC) have partnered and released a digital series to educate parents and caretakers about sextortion and how they can help prevent kids and teens from being victims. This series offers three-to-five-minute videos about current online safety topics and provides essential information about the true dangers of online activities.

The videos can be accessed from the following locations:

nationalcac.org/sextortion-prevention/

https://www.youtube.com/@nationalcac

If you suspect or become aware of possible sexual exploitation of a child, please contact law enforcement. To alert the FBI Birmingham Office, call 205-326-6166. Reports can also be filed with the National Center for Missing & Exploited Children (NCMEC) or online at www.cybertipline.org.

The case was brought as part of Project Safe Childhood, a nationwide initiative launched by the Department of Justice in May 2006 to combat the growing epidemic of child sexual exploitation and abuse. Led by U.S. Attorneys' Offices and the Criminal Division's Child Exploitation and Obscenity Section (CEOS), Project Safe Childhood marshals federal, state, and local resources to better locate, apprehend and prosecute individuals who exploit children via the Internet, and to identify and rescue victims. For more information about Project Safe Childhood, please visit www.projectsafechildhood.gov.