RALEIGH – The United States Attorney for the Eastern District of North Carolina, Robert J. Higdon, Jr., announced that in federal court yesterday, Senior United States District Judge W. Earl Britt, sentenced GARRETT RITSON YOUNG, 36, of Jacksonville to 180 months of imprisonment followed by 20 years of supervised release.
YOUNG was named in a fourteen-count Superseding Indictment filed on May 10, 2017. On July 18, 2017, YOUNG pled guilty to one count of Manufacturing Child Pornography.
On January 4, 2016, the Craven County Sheriff’s Office (CCSO) responded to a residence in Vanceboro, North Carolina, after a concerned parent called 911 and stated a man, later identified as YOUNG, was naked in bed with their 15-year-old son. During an interview with the son, investigators learned he met YOUNG via online social media. According to the son, he and YOUNG engaged in sexual activity numerous times between November 1, 2015, and
January 4, 2016, and they also exchanged nude photos and videos of each other during the that time frame.
As a result, YOUNG was arrested for Contributing to the Delinquency of a Minor and Indecent Liberties with a Minor. YOUNG was interviewed by the CCSO on January 11, 2016, and admitted having an ongoing sexual relationship with the victim. On January 12, 2016, the CCSO executed a search warrant at YOUNG’S residence in Jacksonville. During the search, a ScanDisk memory card and a cellphone were seized and forwarded to the Federal Bureau of Investigation for a forensic examination, which revealed 291 images and 201 videos of child exploitation material (CEM).
Further forensic examination of YOUNG’S computer hardware revealed CEM that involved prepubescent minors and minors who had not attained the age of 12. Additionally, the CEM included sadistic and/or masochistic conduct, as depicted in an image of a young male who was blindfolded with a gag in his mouth, a chain wrapped around his neck, and his hands and feet bound behind him.
Investigators interviewed YOUNG again on January 13, 2016, at which time he admitted making the videos of himself having sex with a 14-year old female, and he acknowledged collecting CEM since he was 14 years old. YOUNG also admitted making a video of himself having sex with another minor female, who is the daughter of YOUNG’S former employer.