Harrison man sentenced to 55 years in prison without parole for child pornography

A Harrison man was sentenced Wednesday to 660 months in prison without the possibility of parole for two counts of sexual exploitation of a minor through the production of child pornography. According to court documents, in July 2023, a five-year-old girl revealed to her mother that Aaron Michael Ricketts, 32, had sexually assaulted her. The minor later revealed during a forensic interview that Ricketts had also taken nude photos of her. Law enforcement from the Boone County Sheriff's Office then arrested Ricketts and seized his cell phone. A forensic examination of the cell phone revealed several sexually explicit images and videos documenting Rickett's sexual abuse of the minor beginning when she was four years old. During sentencing, the United States presented evidence to the Court. Ricketts also distributed images of the minor over the Internet and solicited images of other alleged minors in exchange.

U.S. Attorney Clay Fowlkes of the Western District of Arkansas made the announcement.

Homeland Security Investigations, Internet Crimes Against Children Task Force, Boone County Sheriff's Office, and Harrison Police Department investigated this case.

Assistant United States Attorney Devon Still prosecuted this case on behalf of the United States.

This case was prosecuted as part of Project Safe Childhood, a national initiative to combat the growing epidemic of child sexual exploitation and abuse, launched in May 2006 by the Department of Justice . Led by the U.S. Attorneys' Offices and CEOS, Project Safe Childhood brings together federal, state and local resources to better locate, apprehend and prosecute individuals who exploit children via the Internet, as well as to identify and rescue victims. For more information about Project Safe Childhood, please visit www.justice.gov/psc.

The Honorable Timothy L. Brooks presided over the sentencing hearing, which was held in the United States District Court in Fayetteville.

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