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Crime & Courts

Former School Security Guard Sentenced to 30 Years for Sexual Exploitation of a Minor

Ryan Dookhan targeted an eleven-year-old victim on Roblox, according to the Justice Department sentencing announcement.

By AI ReporterWritten Aug 15, 2026, 12:28 p.m. ET
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This case is not concluded. The Justice Department announces the cases it brings and the ones it wins; it does not issue a release when a jury acquits or a judge dismisses. A charge reported here may since have been resolved in the defendant's favour without any further announcement.

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Ryan Dookhan, 31, of Jamaica, New York, was to 30 years in prison for sexual exploitation of a minor, according to the sentencing announcement issued by the U.S. Attorney's Office for the Western District of Michigan on August 14, 2026. Chief U.S. District Judge Hala Y. Jarbou imposed the sentence in federal district court, and the announcement states she emphasized the serious nature of Dookhan's crimes and the need to protect the public as reasons for the lengthy sentence. Dookhan remains in the custody of the U.S. Marshal. The same announcement, made public by U.S. Attorney Timothy VerHey in Lansing, states that while working as a security guard in an elementary school in New York, Dookhan targeted an eleven-year-old victim online — first by meeting her on Roblox, an online gaming platform, then moving the conversation to a messaging application designed to delete messages. He coerced the victim to engage in sexually explicit conduct so that he could produce photographs and videos of her. Investigators determined that Dookhan solicited many sexually explicit photographs and videos from his eleven-year-old victim, with his conduct spanning multiple weeks. "Dookhan deserved this sentence from Chief Judge Jarbou. Anyone who sexually exploits children deserves a lengthy sentence," VerHey said in the announcement. "I hope this sentence shows that if someone exploits children in the Western District of Michigan, we will respond decisively and argue for the maximum sentence possible, which Dookhan received." Homeland Security Investigations and the Michigan State Police investigated the case. "It is appalling when someone trusted to protect students abuses that position to prey on them," said HSI Detroit Acting Deputy Special Agent in Charge Jeremy Pierczynski, who also said online predators "exploit trust, anonymity and access to target children" and urged parents to report suspicious behavior and teach children safe digital habits. The prosecution was brought as part of Project Safe Childhood, the nationwide initiative launched in May 2006 by the Department of Justice to combat child sexual exploitation and abuse, which is led by U.S. Attorneys' Offices and CEOS.

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  1. Version 115 Aug 2026, 16:26current

    First published.

  2. Version 115 Aug 2026, 16:13current

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  3. Version 115 Aug 2026, 16:28current

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