United States Attorney for South Dakota Alison Ramsdell announced that a federal grand jury has indicted a man and a woman from Winner for two counts of Sex Trafficking of a Child.
Richard Alan Kucera, age 65, and Ivy Rose Heron, age 36, have both pleaded not guilty. Kucera also plead not guilty on two counts of Production of Child Pornography.
The Indictment alleges that in 2020 and 2021, Kucera and Heron intentionally recruited and enticed two juvenile females to engage in commercial sex acts. Both Kucera and Heron financially benefited from their participation in the illegal venture.
The Indictment also alleges that in 2020 and 2021, Kucera coerced the same two minor females to engage in sexually explicit conduct for the purpose of producing visual depictions of such conduct.
The maximum penalty upon conviction is up to life in federal prison and/or a $250,000 fine, life of supervised release, and up to $400 to the Federal Crime Victims Fund. Restitution may also be ordered.
Kucera was released on bond pending trial. Heron was remanded to the custody of the US Marshals Service pending trial. A trial date has been set for October 3, 2023.
The investigation is being conducted by the FBI. Assistant US Attorney Jeffrey Clapper is prosecuting the case.
This case was brought as part of Project Safe Childhood, a nationwide initiative to combat the growing epidemic of child sexual exploitation and abuse, launched in May 2006 by the Department of Justice. Led by the US Attorneys’ Offices and the DOJ’s Child Exploitation and Obscenity Section, Project Safe Childhood marshals federal, state, and local resources to locate, apprehend, and prosecute individuals who exploit children, as well as identify and rescue victims. For more information about Project Safe Childhood, please visit https://www.justice.gov/psc.
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