Peru man pleads guilty to production of child pornography

Mar. 27—A Peru man is pleading guilty to a federal child pornography charge.

Earlier this month, James Dustin Eugene Rippy pleaded guilty to one federal count of production of child pornography, according to court filings.

By pleading guilty, Rippy faces a minimum sentence of 15 years imprisonment and a maximum of 30 years, according to the plea agreement.

His sentencing date is scheduled for 1:30 p.m. June 21 in the United States District Court Northern District of Indiana, South Bend Division. He also faces possible fines, will have to register as a sex offender and may be ordered to pay restitution of at least $3,000 to the victim.

According to the plea agreement, Rippy is admitting to causing "a minor under the age of 18 to engage in sexually explicit conduct for the purpose of producing visual depictions of such conduct, specifically photographs and videos" between the dates of January 2019 and March 13, 2022.

Any other details of Rippy's alleged crimes are unavailable because the probable cause affidavit filed in the case was sealed from the public by Magistrate Judge Michael G. Gotsch Sr. of U.S. District Court for the Northern District of Indiana, South Bend Division

Rippy was indicted in May 2022 by a grand jury on one count of production of child pornography and one count of possession of child pornography.

According to an April 2022 Kokomo Police Department media release, investigators with the department's Internet Crimes Against Children Task Force began assisting the Peru Police Department in March 2021 in connection with a case they were building against Rippy.

Later that same month, officers with Homeland Security Investigations obtained a federal arrest warrant on Rippy for the production and possession of child pornography, and he was taken into custody without incident.

Tyler Juranovich can be reached at 765-454-8577, by email at tyler.juranovich@kokomotribune.com or on Twitter at @tylerjuranovich.