Taylor Man Sentenced To 25 Years For Sexual Exploitation Of Minors

(CBS DETROIT) -- A Downriver man was sentenced to 25 years in federal prison for sexual exploitation of minors and child pornography, the U.S. Attorney's Office announced.

Federal officials say Kenneth Hartley, 53, of Taylor, admitted that in 2010, he pretended to be a teenage girl on Skype and tricked a boy into sending sexually explicit photos of himself. He also used the Kik social media application to get sexually explicit images of two 13-year-old boys in 2014 and 2015.

"In addition to possessing child pornography, Mr. Hartley actively created it for himself and others by exploiting vulnerable children around the world," said James A. Tarasca, special agent in charge of the FBI's Detroit Division.

Officials say Hartley "victimized over 100 minors over the course of a decade" until December 2020 when authorities executed a search warrant at his home. Out of the 29 victims that were identified, 17 of them were under the age of 12 at the time they were exploited.

Hartley was found to be in possession of 46,153 images of child pornography.

"The FBI considers the investigation and prosecution of predators like this defendant to be of the highest priority. Today's sentence serves as a warning to others like him the FBI will aggressively pursue anyone who victimizes and exploits children," Tarasca said.