Couple Sentenced To Over 2300 Years In Prison For Child Pornography


Patricia and Matthew Ayers are facing serious time behind bars. According to Fox8 Live, Patricia Ayers has been sentenced to 1,590 years in prison, while her husband, Matthew, was sentenced to 750 years for the sexual abuse of a minor in their custody and the production of child pornography. Back in April, a federal grand jury indicted them on 106 counts of sexual exploitation of children.

The couple, who pled guilty to more than 75 counts of child pornography back in June, originally faced a maximum of 30 years in prison. However, U.S. District Judge L. Scott Coogler feels otherwise. He expressed that the Ayers’ case is the worst he’s personally handled.

“I have been on the bench since 1998, and this is the worst case I have personally dealt with, including murders.” U.S. District Judge Coogler told the defendants. “You robbed this child of her childhood and her soul, and a maximum sentence is the only sentence appropriate.”

According to the plea agreement, Patricia admitted that she and her husband took explicit photos of the child from 2010 to 2013. During that time, the child was approximately 6- to 9-years-old. She also stated that some of the pictures captured the child involved in sexual acts, reports WAAY-TV. They reportedly emailed the lewd photos to an unnamed man residing in Texas, and agreed to fly the child out to him for sexual purposes.

Federal agents reportedly retrieved pornographic images from the Ayers’ cell phones, computers and flash drives. According to WMBF-News, a Madison County man discovered the disturbing material while downloading files from their personal computer.

Joyce White Vance, U.S. Attorney, released a brief statement in reference to the defendants and the sexual exploitation of children.

“Children must be protected from sexual exploitation, and we remain committed to prosecuting child pornography cases. I thank the FBI for its diligent work on this disturbing case.”

However, their legal troubles are far from over. The couple is now in the custody of Lauderdale County. They still have to face state charges for sexual abuse, rape and child pornography. Their state trial date is scheduled for December 8.

[Image via Bing]

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