CHARLOTTE — A former Colorado sheriff’s deputy was sentenced to more than 21 years in prison for talking two girls from Union County into sending sexually explicit videos and photos via Snapchat, according to U.S. Attorney Dena King.
Vincent Ryan Potter, 38, formerly of Colorado, also was ordered to register as a sex offender after he is released from prison for the coercion and enticement of minors.
[ ALSO READ: ‘Operation Home Alone’ leads to 10 arrests in online child sex sting ]
Potter used Snapchat to coerce the two minors between January and April 2021 to take part in sexually explicit conduct. According to court documents, Potter did that to produce child pornography.
At the time, Potter was a deputy with the Adams County Sheriff’s Office. He began communicating with a 14-year-old female in Union County, investigators said. Potter knew the victim was a teenager.
King said the deputy created multiple Snapchat accounts and pretended to be a 15-year-old boy and a 23-year-old man.
The U.S. attorney said the deputy enticed and pressured the victim to send him photos and videos of “herself engaging in sexually explicit conduct.”
Potter threatened the minor and said he would send the material to her friends and put images on the internet if she didn’t do what he said, according to court documents.
Potter also began talking to another teen in Union County on Snapchat and coerced her to do the same.
On March 4, Potter pleaded guilty to coercion and enticement of a minor to engage in sexually explicit conduct for the purpose of producing child pornography.
“Potter is an online predator who contacted vulnerable children via social media and used deception, pressure, and threats to coerce his young victims into sending him sexually explicit images and videos of themselves. Potter was a sworn officer of the law which makes this case particularly disturbing,” said King. “I commend the law enforcement agencies that investigated this case for working closely across state lines to locate Potter and put a stop to his predatory behavior.”
[ ALSO READ: How a local police department is taking down online sex predators ]
Potter remains in federal custody and will be transferred to the custody of the Federal Bureau of Prisons.
(ALSO READ: Predator targeted mothers on dating apps to gain access to children, police say)