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Indianapolis man sentenced to 40 years for sexual exploitation of teen

Charles Piel, 24, had previously been convicted in state court of sexually abusing children and possessing images of child sexual abuse.
Credit: heliopix - stock.adobe.com

INDIANAPOLIS — An Indianapolis man was sentenced to 40 years in prison for sexually exploiting a Michigan teen, as well as trafficking in child sexual abuse images and videos, the United States Attorney's Office in the Southern District of Indiana announced Wednesday.

Investigators uncovered in 2020 that Charles Piel, 24, had been sending and receiving images and videos of child sexual abuse over the internet, including sending such material to a minor in Florida the year prior. 

After Piel was arrested, investigators further examined his electronic devices, finding other sexually explicit communications with a minor in Michigan. The investigation found that Piel traveled to the state to engage in sexual conduct with the minor in September 2020 and made recordings of the conduct. 

Piel continued communication with the minor and eventually made additional recordings of sexually explicit conduct involving the minor over video conferencing. He kept all the recordings, along with other child sexual abuse images and video until his arrest in October 2020.

At the time of the crimes, Piel had been convicted twice of child sexual abuse offenses. He was convicted of sexual battery in Hendricks County in 2017 and sentenced to probation. While on probation the next year, he was convicted of possession of child pornography in Marion County. He then violated home detention, resulting in jail time prior to the most recent offenses.

"Charles Piel is a habitual child predator who made a career out of sexually abusing and exploiting children," U.S. Attorney Zachary A. Myers said in a statement. "I commend the work of the investigators and prosecutors who have taken this child predator out of our community and helped to bring justice to his young victims. This case is yet another example of the outstanding work of Indiana’s nationally-renowned Internet Crimes Against Children Task Force."

Assistant United States Attorney Kristina M. Korobov, who prosecuted the case, said Piel was ordered to pay $20,000 in restitution and will be federally supervised for a life term following his release from prison.

The case was investigated by the Indianapolis Metropolitan Police Department and the United States Secret Service.

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