Arizona man sentenced to 20 years in prison after pleading guilty to sex crimes

PHOENIX — A man was sentenced to 20 years in prison after pleading guilty to three different sex crimes, including trafficking and exploitation of a minor.

Devon Ray Sharma previously pled guilty to the crimes before being sentenced earlier this week.

The 20-year sentence was the maximum allowed under his plea agreement as Sharma was considered a “prolific offender” in a release by the Maricopa County Attorney’s Office.

“Young women and teenagers can be easily exploited by internet predators. It takes courage for victims of these crimes to come forward and the bravery demonstrated by the victims in this case has prevented future acts of exploitation by this individual,” County Attorney Rachel Mitchell said in the release.

In addition to the 20 years in prison, Sharma will be required to register as a sex offender upon his release, and his sentence includes lifetime probation.

The Chandler Police Department investigated the case and tracked crimes committed by Sharma from December 2016 through June 2020.

According to the release, Sharma would convince victims to send him images and then extort money or sex by threatening to distribute the images to family, friends or internet distribution sites.

Sharma, 28, pled guilty to the three counts in September.

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