Hagerstown Woman Sentenced To Twenty Years In Federal Prison For The Sexual Exploitation Of Minors

Baltimore, Maryland - U.S. District Judge James K. Bredar today sentenced Ashley Marie Tibbs, age 34, of Hagerstown, Maryland, to 20 years in federal prison, followed by lifetime supervised release, for sexual exploitation of a child. Judge Bredar also ordered that, upon her release from prison, Tibbs will be required to register as a sex offender in the places where she resides, where she is an employee, and where she is a student, under the Sex Offender Registration and Notification Act ("SORNA").

The sentence was announced by Erek L. Barron, U.S. Attorney for the District of Maryland; Special Agent in Charge Michael S. McCarthy of Homeland Security Investigations (HSI) Baltimore; Chief Paul Joey Kifer, Chief of the Hagerstown Police Department; and Frederick County State's Attorney J. Charles Smith, III.

According to Tibbs' guilty plea and other court documents, Tibbs sexually abused two minor victims, who were then between the ages of 2 and 5. On each occasion, Tibbs sexually abused the victims, produced videos of the abuse, and sent the videos to co-defendant John Balch in exchange for money. Balch paid Tibbs $38,325 via Cash App.

Balch was previously sentenced to 60 years in federal prison for his exploitation of six minors. Co-defendants Jane Campbell and Amber Ricketts were also sentenced to more than 17 years and 10 years in federal prison, respectively, for distribution of child pornography.

This case was brought as part of Project Safe Childhood, a nationwide initiative launched in May 2006 by the Department of Justice to combat the growing epidemic of child sexual exploitation and abuse. Led by the United States Attorney's Offices and the Criminal Division's Child Exploitation and Obscenity Section, Project Safe Childhood marshals federal, state, and local resources to locate, apprehend, and prosecute individuals who sexually exploit children, and to identify and rescue victims. For more information about Project Safe Childhood, please visit www.justice.gov/psc. For more information about Internet safety education, please visit www.justice.gov/psc and click on the "Resources" tab on the left of the page.

U.S. Attorney Barron commended HSI, the Hagerstown Police Department, and the Frederick County State's Attorney's Office for their work in this investigation. U.S. Attorney Barron also recognized the U.S. Attorney's Offices for the Northern District of West Virginia and the Middle District of Florida, and the FBI's Pittsburgh Field Office for their assistance. Mr. Barron thanked Assistant U.S. Attorney Paul E. Budlow and Special Assistant U.S. Attorney Joyce King, who are prosecuting the case.

For more information on the Maryland U.S. Attorney's Office, its priorities, and resources available to help the community, please visit www.justice.gov/usao-md/project-safe-childhood and https://www.justice.gov/usao-md/community-outreach.

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