Ashland Man Charged In Federal Court For Sexual Exploration Of A Child

A 31-year-old Ashland man has been charged in federal court with Sexual Exploitation of a Child.

The U.S. Attorney’s Office, Western District of Missouri, says Scott Barker was charged with the offense in a criminal complaint filed on Monday.

The complaint alleges that Barker engaged in sexually explicit conduct on video with a minor child victim who was about one-year-old at the time.

Barker remains in federal custody pending a detention hearing set for Thursday.

The case was investigated by Homeland Security Investigations.

***Release:

JEFFERSON CITY, Mo. – An Ashland, Mo., man has been charged in federal court with Sexual Exploitation of a Child.

Scott Alan Barker, 31, was charged with one count of sexual exploitation of a child in a criminal complaint filed in the U.S. District Court in Jefferson City, Mo., on July 17, 2023. Barker remains in federal custody pending a detention hearing on Thursday, July 20. Copies of the complaint and supporting affidavit are attached.

The charge contained in this complaint are simply accusations, and not evidence of guilt. Evidence supporting the charge must be presented to a federal trial jury, whose duty is to determine guilt or innocence.

This case is being prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorney Ashley Turner. It was investigated by Homeland Security Investigations.

Project Safe Childhood

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.usdoj.gov/psc . For more information about Internet safety education, please visit www.usdoj.gov/psc and click on the tab “resources.”