Former Maryland detective pleads guilty to sexual exploitation of children
A former domestic violence detective with the Harford County Sheriff's Office pleaded guilty to sexual exploitation of two children.
Ryan Christopher Hall, 50, was named in a federal indictment earlier this year, alleging that he sexually abused the children for years.
His sentencing is scheduled for March. Hhall faces a mandatory minimum sentence of 15 years in federal prison for each count of sexual exploitation of a child.
He is a former domestic violence detective who served nearly 30 years with the sheriff's office.
Hall's arrest and indictment
In March 2025, a 10-count indictment alleged that Hall sexually abused two children between May 2017 and October 2024. Officials also found that Hall had installed cameras to create child sexual abuse material.
Hall was arrested in Carroll County in October 2024.
Harford County officials said Hall was suspended with pay when they learned about the investigation. Once he was arrested, Hall was suspended without pay.
"Any abuse of power or breach of public trust is taken very seriously," said Harford County Sheriff Jefferey Gahler. "I find it both personally and professionally disappointing that someone within our ranks would break that trust and be accused of such heinous acts and crimes."
Investigation into sexual abuse accusations
During their investigation, Caroll County detectives spoke with the victims, who said Hall started abusing them when they were about 10 years old. They told detectives that Hall would remove their clothes and inappropriately touch them.
One of the victims told detectives that in one instance, they heard a camera shutter.
Police said they recovered a camera under a baseboard heater in the bathroom of a home, which revealed years of sexual abuse material.
According to the Carroll County State's Attorney's Office, the camera was hooked up to other devices.
According to a police report, Hall confessed to installing cameras inside a bathroom and bedroom of a home to create the material, saying it was "because I have a problem."