Former MDOC Officer Sentenced to 16 years for Sexual Exploitation of Children

DETROIT - A Jackson County man who had previously worked as a Michigan Department of Corrections Officer was sentenced to 16 years in federal prison for sexually exploiting children and distributing child pornography, announced United States Attorney Dawn N. Ison.

Ison was joined in the announcement by Shawn Gibson, acting Special Agent in Charge, Homeland Security Investigations Detroit.

Aaron Ray Fetters, 29, of Jackson, Michigan, was sentenced by United States District Judge Terrence G. Berg. Fetters' conviction stems from his years-long sexual exploitation of a minor girl known to him, who was in her mid-teens at the time. Fetters recorded himself sexually assaulting the girl repeatedly over the course of several years.

Fetters' crimes came to light in 2022, when Homeland Security Investigations and Michigan State Police received a tip that Fetters had distributed images of child pornography to other users using a social media application. Law enforcement began investigating Fetters and retrieved his electronic devices, which led to the discovery of his recorded sexual abuse of the minor victim. On the same devices, investigators located hundreds of images of child pornography that Fetters had downloaded from the internet and shared with others, including children as young as infants being sexually assaulted.

"Thanks to the tireless efforts of our law enforcement partners, including the MSP and HSI agents working on this case, a prolific sexual predator became known, his abuse was stopped, and he has been punished for his heinous acts ." U.S. Attorney Ison stated.

"HSI is dedicated to protecting our most vulnerable population against sexual predators who seek to take advantage of their innocence especially offenders in positions of public trust," said HSI Detroit acting Special Agent in Charge Shawn Gibson "Working with our law enforcement partners, we will continue to aggressively protect children by diligently investigating online sexual offenses involving minors. My thoughts are with the victim in this case, and it is my hope that they can continue the healing process knowing justice has been served."

This case was investigated by Homeland Security Investigations and Michigan State Police and was prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorneys Christopher Rawsthorne and Diane Princ.