PITTSBURGH — This is an official press release from the U.S. Department of Justice (USAO - Pennsylvania, Western), published as received.
PITTSBURGH – A former resident of Penn Hills, Pennsylvania, has been indicted by a federal grand jury in Pittsburgh on charges of Coercion and Enticement of a Minor to Engage in Illegal Sexual Activity, Production of Material Depicting the Sexual Exploitation of a Minor, and Distribution of Material Depicting the Sexual Exploitation of a Minor, Acting United States Attorney Troy Rivetti announced today.
The seven-count Superseding Indictment, returned on March 7, 2023, named Kaung Myat Kyaw, age 23, as the sole defendant.
According to the Superseding Indictment, during various periods between August 9, 2020 and September 2021, Kyaw enticed and coerced five minor victims, using the Internet and a cellular telephone service, to engage in sexual activity for which he could be charged with a criminal offense. Additionally, Kyaw is charged from the end of April 2021 through September 2021, with producing and attempting to produce material depicting the sexual exploitation of a minor, and then on September 22, 2021, with distributing the material to another individual in Texas.
The law provides for a maximum total sentence of not less than 15 years in prison and up to life, a fine of $1,500,000, or both. Under the Federal Sentencing Guidelines, the actual sentence imposed would be based upon the seriousness of the offenses and the prior criminal history, if any, of the defendant. Kyaw was arrested on November 18, 2021, by agents of the Federal Bureau of Investigation and was detained pending trial.
Assistant United States Attorney Carolyn J. Bloch is prosecuting this case on behalf of the government.
The Federal Bureau of Investigation, the Fairfax County, Virginia Police Department, the Wright County, Minnesota Sheriff’s Office, and other local police departments conducted the investigation leading to the Superseding Indictment in this case.
A superseding indictment is an accusation. A defendant is presumed innocent unless and until proven guilty.
This case was brought as part of Project Safe Childhood, a nationwide initiative launched in May 2006 by the Department of Justice to combat the growing epidemic of child sexual exploitation and abuse. Led by the United States Attorneys' Offices and the Criminal Division's Child Exploitation and Obscenity Section, Project Safe Childhood marshals federal, state, and local resources to locate, apprehend, and prosecute individuals, who sexually exploit children, and to identify and rescue victims. For more information about Project Safe Childhood, please visit www.justice.gov/psc.
