FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Feb. 5, 2019
COVINGTON—District Attorney Warren Montgomery announced that Ryan Horak, 21, of Madisonville, pleaded guilty Tuesday (Feb. 5) as charged to 500 counts of possession of pornography involving juveniles under the age of 13.
Horak faces 10 to 40 years in prison without probation, parole, or suspension of sentence. He will be required to register as a sex offender for 25 years after his release.
The investigation began when the Attorney General’s Office was alerted by the National Center for Missing and Exploited Children that a St. Tammany Parish resident was uploading thousands of images of suspected child pornography to his Dropbox account. Supervisory Special Agent Brian Brown of the Louisiana Attorney General’s Office investigated the case.
Assistant District Attorneys Holly McGinness and Josephine Heller were prepared for trial with witnesses and evidence, when the defendant decided to plead guilty as charged Tuesday, just before the jury panel entered the courtroom. His sentencing hearing will be held in April.