MADISON, Wis -- Timothy M. O’Shea, United States Attorney for the Western District of Wisconsin, announced that Cash Otradovec, 31, Madison, Wisconsin was sentenced today by Chief U.S. District Judge James D. Peterson to 17 1⁄2 years in federal prison, followed by 15 years of supervised release, for using minors to engage in sexually explicit conduct and make pictures and videos of the conduct. Otradovec pleaded guilty to this charge on December 9, 2021.
In May 2020, the FBI in Miami, Florida, was contacted by a father who reported that an unknown person attempted to obtain nude images from his 15-year-old son through several social media platforms. The investigation revealed that an Instagram account with the name Callie and a Kik account with the name Becky had been in communication with the minor. Further investigation tied those accounts to Otradovec.
In October 2020, Otradovec was interviewed and admitted to creating the two accounts, with the Callie Instagram account dating back to 2016. Using the two accounts, the defendant posed as Becky and Callie, two college women who were friends with each other. As these personas, Otradovec communicated with six different boys, ages 15-17, and tricked them into sending sexually explicit images.
When the boys would refuse to send additional images, or create the videos Otradovec wanted, he relentlessly pursued them and threated to send the images he already had to all of the boys’ followers, even after the boys begged him to stop. In one case, a boy pleaded with Otradovec saying “I’m literally going to kill myself.” Instead of stopping, Otradovec, posing as Callie, told the boy the way to make it stop is to send the picture.
In sentencing Otradovec, Judge Peterson called this crime a “very cruel exploitation of the minors,” with that cruel exploitation being the heart of the wrong. Judge Peterson observed that this was not just one moment of bad judgment, but ongoing and persistent, calling the conduct terrorizing and humiliating for the victims.
Judge Peterson recognized that Otradovec was a veteran that served his country and was close to his family, but who lived a double life. Otradovec faced a mandatory minimum sentence of 15 years in prison, but Judge Peterson found his conduct so serious, it warranted a sentence of 17 1⁄2 years.
The charge against Otradovec was the result of an investigation conducted by the Federal Bureau of Investigation. Assistant U.S. Attorneys Julie Pfluger and Laura Przybylinski Finn prosecuted this case.
Last Update: Mar 19, 2022 12:02 pm CDT
