Fresno Man Sentenced to 25 Years in Prison for Sexual Exploitation of a Minor

Peter Yang, 34, of Fresno, was sentenced today to 25 years in prison for sexual exploitation of a child, U.S. Attorney Eric Grant announced.

The sentence will be followed by 15 years of supervised, during which time Yang's access to children, computers, and the internet will be restricted. He was also ordered to pay $5,000 in restitution, and he will be required to register as a sex offender upon his release from custody.

According to court documents, between November 2021 and March 2022, Yang communicated with a 15-year-old victim in Missouri on the gaming platform Among Us, and then through Discord and FaceTime calls. Yang coerced the victim into creating and then transmitting sexually explicit images of the victim to Yang. Yang also discussed traveling from California to Missouri to meet the victim in person at a motel near the victim's residence.

This case is the product of an investigation by the Christian County Sheriff's Office in Missouri and the Central California Internet Crimes Against Children Task Force, with assistance from the National Center for Missing & Exploited Children. Assistant U.S. Attorney David Gappa prosecuted the case.

This case was brought as part of Project Safe Childhood, a nationwide initiative to combat the growing epidemic of child sexual exploitation and abuse launched in May 2006 by the Department of Justice. Led by U.S. Attorneys' Offices and CEOS, Project Safe Childhood marshals federal, state and local resources to better locate, apprehend and prosecute individuals who exploit children via the Internet, as well as to identify and rescue victims. For more information about Project Safe Childhood, please visit https://www.justice.gov/psc.