COLUMBIA COUNTY, Ore. (KOIN) — A Columbia County man was sentenced to federal prison after recording his repeated rape and abuse of a child and secretly recording another using a bathroom.
According to the U.S. Attorney’s Office in Portland, Anthony Wayne Dewey, 60, was sentenced to 27 years in federal prison followed by a life term of supervised release.
“Our hearts break for the children tragically abused and exploited in this and every case of child exploitation,” said Scott Erik Asphaug, U.S. Attorney for the District of Oregon. “We offer each of them this message: this experience will not define you. You are bigger and stronger than your abuser. You will grow to lead an extraordinary life of meaning and purpose.”
According to court documents, in August 2017, after receiving information Dewey had sexually abused a child and created photographs depicting the abuse, law enforcement executed a search warrant on his Columbia County residence.
Investigators said they seized numerous videos showing Dewey abusing the child over a period of five years when the child was 4 to 11 years old. The abuse occurred at Dewey’s residences in Oregon and Washington.
“During the search, law enforcement also found hidden camera videos of another minor victim using a bathroom,” said prosecutors with the District Attorney’s Office. “Investigators later learned that Dewey had previously been convicted in 2009 after hiding a camera in the bathroom of his residence in Cowlitz County, Washington. No video evidence was recovered or disclosed at that time.”
In February of 2018, Dewey was charged with a criminal complaint with sexual exploitation of a child.
He was later charged in June 2018 and November 2019 by criminal information and superseding criminal information with two counts of sexually exploiting a child, according to prosecutors.
On November 7, 2019, Dewey pleaded guilty to both charges.
“The focus — as always — is on the victims,” said Kieran L. Ramsey, special agent in charge of the FBI in Oregon. “Although Anthony Dewey received a severe and just sentence, the potential damage done to the children by his depravity will likely well outlast his punishment. Help us protect our community’s children by reporting other violent predators to your local law enforcement agency or the FBI.”
The case was prosecuted by Natalie Wight, assistant U.S. Attorney Natalie Wight and investigated by the FBI with assistance from the Longview Police Department and St. Helens Police Department.