BAY CITY – A Roscommon County man was sentenced yesterday to 235 months in federal prison on charges of possessing, receiving, and transporting child pornography, announced United States Attorney Dawn N. Ison.
Ison was joined in the announcement by acting Special Agent in Charge James C.Harris, III, Homeland Security Investigations and Sheriff Ed Stern, Roscommon County Sheriff’s Department.
Sentenced was Scott Lantzy, 49. Lantzy was convicted by a federal jury in October, 2021, after a 4 day trial which was conducted before United States District Judge Thomas Ludington in Bay City. The jury deliberated approximately 45 minutes before returning the guilty verdicts.
According to evidence presented during the trial, Lantzy, is a serial sex offender with four prior CSC convictions, one conviction for accosting a minor, and a Sex Offender Registration and Notification Act (SORNA) related conviction spanning from 1998 until present. Lantzy came to the attention of law enforcement when he impersonated an EMT at a high school football game. During the game, Lantzy came onto the field to aid an injured player. He accompanied the teen to the hospital, where he made his way into the emergency room. He continued to attempt contact with the injured player the following day. A few months before the football game, Lantzy befriended another high school student who testified at the trial. This student testified that while housesitting for Lantzy, Lantzy called him and told him that he had left him a camera and condoms and that the student should send Lantzy pictures of what he and his friend were doing while house sitting. When Lantzy arrived home, the student testified that he saw pictures of child pornography on Lantzy’s personal cell phone. This led detectives from the Roscommon County Sheriff’s Department to execute a search warrant on Lantzy’s home.
Lantzy was convicted of two counts of possession/access with intent to view child pornography; one count of possession of child pornography; one count of transportation of child pornography; and one count of receipt of child pornography.
“Protecting children from dangerous child predators is one of my office’s top priorities,” said U.S. Attorney Ison. “I commend our law enforcement partners for their hard work and dedication to investigating and prosecuting crimes against children.”
“Our communities are safer when Lantzy and others like him are behind bars,” said HSI Detroit acting Special Agent in Charge James C. Harris III. “Lantzy’s repeated attempts to lure and exploit children are sickening and I’m proud of the special agents and our law enforcement partners who helped put him away.”
The case was investigated by the Roscommon County Sheriff’s Department and special agents of Homeland Security Investigations in Sault Ste. Marie and Detroit, with assistance from the Michigan State Police. The case is being prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorneys Tim Turkelson and Alison Furtaw.