September 15, 2022 - FRESNO, Calif. — Anthony Rodriguez, aka Anthony Rito Lara, 34, of Modesto, was sentenced today to 45 years in prison for sexual exploitation of a minor, U.S. Attorney Phillip A. Talbert announced.

According to court documents, in September and October 2020, Rodriguez used a cellphone to create approximately 49 videos and 51 images of a child under 12 years old engaged in sexually explicit conduct. Rodriguez distributed some of these videos over the internet, including one video in which he engages in a sex act with the child.

This case was the product of an investigation by the Federal Bureau of Investigation and the Modesto Police Department with assistance from the Stanislaus County District Attorney’s Office. Assistant U.S. Attorney Alexandre M. Dempsey prosecuted the case.

This case was brought as part of Project Safe Childhood, a nationwide initiative launched in May 2006 by the Department of Justice to combat the growing epidemic of child sexual exploitation and abuse. Led by the United States Attorneys’ Offices and the Criminal Division’s Child Exploitation and Obscenity Section, Project Safe Childhood marshals federal, state, and local resources to locate, apprehend, and prosecute those who sexually exploit children, and to identify and rescue victims. For more information about Project Safe Childhood, please visit www.usdoj.gov/psc. Click on the “resources” tab for information about internet-safety education.

Source: DOJ Release

Related: Modesto Man Pleads Guilty to Sexual Exploitation of a Minor