YOUNGSTOWN, OHIO – 39-year-old Rickie Salus was convicted for Importuning felony of the second degree, Attempted Gross Sexual Imposition felony of the fourth degree, Disseminating Matter Harmful to Juveniles felony of the fourth degree and Public Indecency Misdemeanor of the first degree. Visiting Cuyahoga County Judge Timothy McGinty sentenced Salus to 5 years behind bars. Salus will also have to register as a tier II sex offender once released. A tier II sex offender status will require Salus to register with authorities every 180 days for 25 years. Assistant Prosecutors Daniel Yozwiak and Caitlyn Andrews successfully prosecuted this case.
In 2023, Salus was arrested for indecently exposing himself to the minor victim, showing sexually explicit material to the minor, soliciting the minor for sex acts, and attempting to have sexual contact with the minor.
In his prior 2018 case, Salus was arrested for sharing inappropriate videos of himself with a 12-year-old from his neighborhood. Salus would contact the victim on Facebook and send them nude pictures and videos. Salus was charged for his crimes soon after the victim’s parent came forward with the information. Due to his prior conviction, the Importuning charge was upgraded from a felony of the third degree to a felony of the second degree.
Mahoning County Prosecutor Lynn Maro thanks the Mahoning County Sheriff’s Office for their hard work on this case which led to a conviction.
