A Woodbury resident has admitted to engaging in a vile scheme involving the sexual exploitation of minors. Timothy Lennard Gebhart, 38, pled guilty to charges of producing and distributing child sexual abuse material, as well as using coercion to make minors participate in sexually explicit acts, as reported by the U.S. Attorney’s Office.

Investigations revealed that Gebhart, between July 10, 2021, and March 11, 2022, manipulated a 16-year-old, referred to as Minor A, and a 14-year-old, known as Minor B, to produce pornographic videos. After obtaining these videos, Gebhart not only distributed them via computer and cellular phone but also leveraged them to extort money and other valuables from Minor A, threatening to send the explicit content to the victim's family and friends.

In a statement in the courtroom, Acting U.S. Attorney Lisa D. Kirkpatrick condemned the sextortion, calling it "abhorrent" and vowing that her office would persist in prosecuting such cases vigorously. "Sextortion—threatening to share explicit images of a victim unless they comply with a predator’s demands—is abhorrent," she stated. "All too often, our children become victims of these monstrous schemes." Gebhart's guilty plea was accepted by U.S. District Court Judge Jerry W. Blackwell, and he faces a mandatory minimum of 15 years.

The case is a result of collaborative efforts by the Woodbury Police Department, Greene County (Indiana) Sheriff’s Department, the Indiana State Police, and the FBI, with support from the Owatonna Police Department. This prosecution is part of Project Safe Childhood, a nationwide initiative launched in May 2006 by the Department of Justice to combat child sexual exploitation and abuse. For more information