Molester gets 110 years for producing child porn

BRUNSWICK, Ga. – A 53-year-old Jesup man was sentenced Monday to 110 years in prison for his sexual exploitation of minors through the production and distribution of numerous images of child pornography.

Evidence presented at the guilty plea and sentencing hearings showed that between 2009 and 2011, Stephen Keating repeatedly sexually molested three children younger than 12 to create pictures and videos of that conduct, then distributed images of the abuse. In addition to those three children, further investigation following Keating's guilty plea revealed that he sexually molested 12 minors whose abuse was not captured on film.

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"This defendant's lengthy sentence represents the lifetime of pain and anguish he has brought upon his victims," U.S. Attorney Edward Tarver said. "Depraved acts such as these will bring together every facet of law enforcement to garner the severest punishment allowed by law. Protecting this country's children is the highest priority for the Department of Justice and this United States Attorney's Office."

"The hideous abuse Stephen Keating inflicted on more than a dozen children can never be erased, but hopefully his victims can find some comfort in the fact that he will never again be a free man," said Brock D. Nicholson, special agent in charge of Homeland Security Investigations Atlanta. "This investigation is a perfect example of the revolution in international law enforcement cooperation in cases involving child exploitation and victim identification. After Danish police first discovered the photos, and less than 24 hours after we identified Keating as the perpetrator, HSI and a host of federal, state and local law enforcement agencies were searching his residence, putting him in handcuffs and rescuing his victims."

Each count of child exploitation to which Keating pleaded guilty carried a mandatory minimum sentence of 15 years in prison and a maximum sentence of 30 years in prison, followed by at least five years of supervised release. The count of distribution of child pornography carried a mandatory minimum sentence of five years in prison and a maximum sentence of 20 years in prison, followed by at least five years of supervised release. Keating was also ordered to register as a sex offender.