Shawn Riedesel, a 29-year-old from Burnsville, Minnesota, was sentenced to 440 months (more than 36 years) in federal prison, followed by 25 years of supervised release, for grooming and sexually exploiting children. He pled guilty to two counts of sexual exploitation of a child and must also pay $69,000 in restitution to his victims. Upon release, he must register as a sex offender.
Between December 2021 and July 2022, Riedesel coerced at least three underage girls to produce and send sexually explicit images and videos. He met at least one child in person for sex on multiple occasions. While committing these crimes, he was in a teacher preparation program through "Teach Kentucky" and stayed in a dorm room on Bellarmine University's campus.
In late June 2022, a witness discovered inappropriate electronic communications between Riedesel and a 15-year-old Indiana girl. The girl initially believed the person communicating with her was a 19-year-old boy, but he was actually Riedesel using an encrypted email program. The witness continued the conversation using the girl's email account and contacted the Indiana State Police. Investigators found that Riedesel had crossed state lines multiple times to have sex with the child.
Riedesel was arrested on July 02, 2022, when he arrived to meet the child at her parents' house. Investigators seized his iPhone and other devices, finding thousands of sexually explicit images and videos of children. The child informed investigators that Riedesel forced her to watch his collection of child sexual abuse material. He also coerced and enticed other underage girls to send him sexually explicit content. https://www.justice.gov/usao-sdin/pr/louisville-teaching-assistant-sentenced-over-thirty-six-years-federal-prison-grooming (Oct. 31, 2024).
Commentary
In the source material, the perpetrator was in training to be a teacher and used encrypted email to communicate with his targets.
Perpetrators use encrypted email to keep their communication with children, including students, private. Encrypted email converts the content of an email into an unreadable format, ensuring that only the intended recipient can decode and read it. This process involves the use of encryption keys, which are generated by mathematical algorithms.
Not all encrypted email is for criminal purposes. Financial personnel use encrypted email to communicate sensitive financial or personal information. Lawyers use it to maintain attorney-client privilege. However, as a tool for school staff to communicate with students, encrypted email is a red flag.
The final takeaway is that schools should not permit teachers or staff to communicate with student or parents using encrypted email. Schools should make it clear that all written communications be in email and that the school and parents are copied on all written communications.
