Lecturer sentenced to more than 36 years in prison for grooming and sexually abusing children

HENDERSON, Ky. (WEHT) – A teaching assistant has been sentenced to more than 36 years in federal prison after pleading guilty to two counts of sexual abuse of a child in Louisville.

According to court documents, 29-year-old Shawn Riedesel persuaded and coerced at least three underage girls to produce and send sexually explicit images and videos between December 2021 and July 2022.

The documents say he also personally met at least one boy for sexual acts while he was attending a teacher preparation program at Bellarmine University and lived in a dorm room in Louisville.

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In late June 2022, a witness learned of inappropriate electronic communications between Riedesel and a 15-year-old Indiana girl over a school computer, authorities said. The boy allegedly told Riedesel that he was 15, and Riedesel initially believed he was a 19-year-old boy. Authorities announced that Riedesel used an end-to-end encrypted email program to communicate.

Indiana State Police were contacted to investigate. This is when investigators learned that Riedesel had crossed state lines multiple times to have sexual intercourse with the child; these included spending several days at a hotel in Indiana, the boy’s parents’ home in Indiana while they were away, and a church. Investigators also learned that Riedesel picked up the boy from his home in Indiana and drove him across the state line to his dorm room in Louisville to care for him.

Authorities say Riedesel was arrested on July 2, 2022, when he arrived at his parents’ home to meet the child. During a search of Riedesel’s iPhone, investigators allegedly found sexually explicit images taped to a wall in the boy’s dorm room arranged in the shape of a heart.

Authorities say the ISP also collected an additional iPhone, an iPad, and numerous computers and digital storage devices, including thousands of sexually explicit images and videos of children obtained online and images of Riedesel engaging in lewd acts with the victim.

“Indiana State Police investigators work diligently every day throughout Indiana and in close collaboration with law enforcement partners to help bring to justice those who seek to perpetuate the victimization of children,” said Indiana State Police Superintendent Douglas G. Carter.

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The boy then alleged that Riedesel forced him to view a “large collection of child sexual abuse material” that he kept on his computer, including recordings of the sexual abuse of prepubescent children and infants.

Authorities also said Riedesel saved a “shopping list” on her iPhone, including several sex-related items, coloring books and crayons, during her stay at the hotel to have sex with the victim.

Investigators also allegedly found sexually explicit conversations on his iPhone between Riedesel and other underage girls, including sexually explicit video calls with another underage girl that he recorded performing sexual acts.

“Pedophiles like these use technology to find, groom and exploit our children from across the river and across the country,” said Zachary A. Myers, U.S. Attorney for the Southern District of Indiana. “This time, investigators were able to access the digital evidence needed to identify additional victims and obtain a serious federal prison sentence. But many companies design their technology to make court-approved searches impossible, hampering our ability to rescue children and hold sexual predators accountable. The FBI and “Our office, along with our law enforcement partners at Indiana State Police, will continue to do all we can to secure the necessary evidence and make our children safer by removing these heinous criminals from our communities.”

“The protection of our children must be a priority; every child deserves a safe environment free from exploitation and abuse,” said FBI Special Agent in Charge Herbert J. Stapleton in Indianapolis. “Partnerships between the FBI and other agencies provide effective responses to such heinous crimes, ensuring criminals are held accountable and never harm another innocent child.”

In addition to the sentence, Riedesel was ordered to pay $69,000 in restitution to his victims, followed by 25 years of supervised release. He must also register as a sex offender wherever he lives, works or goes to school.

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