Nampa registered sex offender sentenced to 25 years in prison on new felony charge
A registered sex offender living in Nampa was sentenced to 25 years in federal prison following a plea agreement on a felony charge of sexual exploitation of a minor.
Troy Groene, 48, also was ordered by U.S. District Judge B. Lynn Winmill to pay $200,000 in restitution to his victims. As part of his sentence, Groene will remain under supervised release the rest of his life after his federal prison term, according to a news release from the U.S. Attorney for the District of Idaho.
Nampa police arrested Groene in late 2020 on suspicion of two felony counts of sexual battery of a minor 16 or 17 years of age. Through a search warrant, police seized explicit videos from Groene’s cellphone and cloud account that he made of a 16-year-old girl, as well as of another 17-year-old female victim, the release said.
In addition, two other 17-year-old girls disclosed to police during their investigation that Groene had made sexually explicit videos of them during prior incidents.
Groene previously was sentenced to 10 years in Idaho prison for sexual battery of a minor 16 or 17 years of age, court records showed. He was made to register as a sex offender related to a plea agreement on the 2005 felony charge.
Several of Groene’s victims appeared in court during his federal sentencing, according to the news release. Winmill labeled Groene a sexual predator, and commended his victims as brave and heroes, the U.S. Attorney’s Office said.
“I agree with the court that the victims in this case are heroes,” U.S. Attorney for the District of Idaho Josh Hurwit said in a statement. “We should recognize the importance of creating spaces where victims — like the brave young women in this case — feel safe to report any form of sexual abuse or sexual exploitation. And we must rededicate ourselves to supporting the victims of these reprehensible crimes.”
April is Sexual Assault Awareness Month. The federal case against Groene was brought as part of a national initiative launched by the U.S. Department of Justice in 2006 called Project Safe Childhood to combat child sexual exploitation and abuse.
