Lancaster man convicted of child porn possession, distribution
Published 6:10 pm Wednesday, January 15, 2020
KY ATTORNEY GENERAL
News release
FRANKFORT – Attorney General Daniel Cameron announced that a Lancaster man, Arthur Eugene Butler, 41, was convicted of possession and distribution of child pornography as the result of an investigation led by the Cyber Crimes Unit within the Attorney General’s Department of Criminal Investigations.
On Friday, Butler pleaded guilty in the U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of Kentucky to one count of possession of a visual representation of a minor engaged in sexually explicit conduct and one count of transporting a visual depiction of a minor engaged in sexually explicit conduct. Judge Danny C. Reeves will issue final sentencing on April 24 in Lexington.
After receiving a tip from The National Center for Missing and Exploited Children (NCMEC) regarding an individual transporting sexually explicit images of children, detectives from the Cyber Crimes Unit investigated the case and, in conjunction with the United States Probation Office, arrested Butler. He had previously served five years in federal prison on a charge of child pornography and was completing five years of supervised release when he was arrested.
“A strong partnership with federal officials is essential as we work to protect Kentucky’s children from sexual exploitation,” said Attorney General Cameron. “Our Cyber Crimes Unit within the Department of Criminal Investigations works closely with federal law enforcement in the investigation and prosecution of complex cases to ensure that the voiceless are not lost or forgotten.”
Assistant U.S. Attorney for the Eastern District of Kentucky, Erin Roth, prosecuted the case on behalf of the U.S. Attorney’s Office. The Office of the Attorney General’s Cyber Crimes Unit and DHS-HIS conducted the investigation.
Robert M. Duncan, Jr., United States Attorney for the Eastern District of Kentucky, covering the 67 easternmost counties, stated, “I commend the law enforcement officers involved, including investigators from the Kentucky Attorney General’s Office, for their work on this investigation.”